Stacks Reserve: Chocobanana
The Bruery

 

From the 12.7 oz bottle in a snifter via Bluejacket74! Cheers Dude!
This SOLID brew pours a rich dark blackish brown with a moderate head of
khaki foam that sizzles to a thin ring with some excellent legs on a swirl. Nose
of rich bourbon, vanilla, brown sugars, brulee, light banana, dark chocolate, and
moderate maple. Floors follow the nose with some light exceptions. Layers of bourbon
crash over dark chocolate, banana bread, vanilla, medium oak notes, char, roast, brulee,
toffee, and maple. Mouth feel is full, moderately slick, coating, warming, rich as
the day is long, and finishing with a nicely balanced bourbon and dark
chocolate note.

Of note some dark fruits appear with warmth....nice!

Overall, another stunner from the masters of blending flavors.
A decadent treat for certain!

Cheers

 

Courtesy of @roguer in '25 BIF

Pours black with no head and thin ring of bubbles on the glass. Smells of chocolate, bourbon, maple syrup, banana, and vanilla. Taste follows the nose. It's decadent with bourbon, maple, and chocolate dominating, vanilla and banana taking a backseat. It's lightly carbonated, slick and somewhat syrupy in mouthfeel. The finish is maple, bourbon, dark chocolate, but as it warms, gives somewhat of an astringent aftertaste--if it wasn't for this, I'd have likely rated higher. Gastric warming after each sip, but not surprising given the 19.7% abv. This drinks easier than the abv would suggest though.

 

12.7 ounce bottle, 2024 edition, bottled 10/09/24. Served in a chalice, the beer pours dark brown/black with about an inch tan head that fizzled away pretty quickly. Small amount of lacing. The brew smells like roasted malt, dark chocolate, bananas, vanilla and some maple. For the most part I think the taste is similar to the aroma, but there's also some burnt/charred malt, caramel, bourbon and dark bready flavors noticeable too. The maple and burnt/charred malt flavors stand out to me here, and it leans sweeter tasting overall. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's coating and rich with a moderate amount of carbonation. I liked this one a lot, hoping the other stacks reserve brews are as good as this one!

On tap. Dark brown black color. Not much head.

Another strong one, but not necessarily in a bad way. Has a huge bourbon influence. A definite sipper. Bourbon, oak, tobacco, raisins, molasses, dark fruits (cherries), fudge, chocolate. The bananas show a bit but not sure I’d have picked them out. The maple shows a lot more. Vanilla.

Warming. This is a big beer. Very sweet. Surprisingly, a 4 oz pour doesn’t last long.