Retribution
DuClaw Brewing Company

RetributionRetribution
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From:
DuClaw Brewing Company
 
Maryland, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
Ranked #1,445
ABV:
11.5%
Score:
92
Ranked #5,472
Avg:
4.12 | pDev: 10.44%
Reviews:
96
Ratings:
501
Status:
Active
Rated:
Oct 11, 2022
Added:
Oct 14, 2011
Wants:
  80
Gots:
  120
A full-bodied, Single Barrel Bourbon-aged Imperial Stout with rich aromas of espresso and dark chocolate, and smooth roasted malt flavor. Aged for 6 months inside charred Kentucky white oak bourbon barrels to add the natural vanilla and caramelized sugar flavors of the bourbon soaked wood to the beer. Each bottle run is drawn from a single barrel, making each batch a unique drinking experience. ABV from 10.5% to 11.5%.
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Ratings by StoryOfTheGhost:
Photo of StoryOfTheGhost
Reviewed by StoryOfTheGhost from New Jersey

1.83/5  rDev -55.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.75
I rarely feel the need to leave a negative review on a beer. I rarely write reviews at all, but when I do, its usually because I really enjoyed a beer and want to share about it. But this beer was so bad that the story must be told.

It was promising looking. Very dark, great lacing and nice copper head.

The smell was enough to let me know I was in trouble. It smelled like a hot mess. A mixture of Raisonettes and Booze.

Taste- goodness gracious. It was so awful that I am really just spitballing to come up with anything that reflects the pungent taste of sweet and bitter malts, boozy with no character, cloying chocolate syrup and raison puree.

Feel- hard to rate. I hated the first couple of sip so much and they lingered so bad that I just threw my head back and went down the hatch.

I think I just do not get Du Claw. Every beer I have had from them tends to be my least favorite beer I have purchased in a long time. Some people love them. I have some friends that think they're the bees knees, but I just don't feel it
Mar 01, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of DrDemento456
Reviewed by DrDemento456 from Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Picked up a super old vintage of the stuff date out of barrel 09/21/2012. Slight rust noted from the cap thankfully none has gotten into the beer. Pour is very deep dark blackness with little to no head to speak of maybe a very thin mocha ring. Smells Heavy whiskey tones, slight wood barrel mostly coffee and hazelnut sweetness but bourbon is mostly dominant. Taste of acidic whiskey, some burnt bread, ashtray and a bit of coffee sweetness. Not any metallic or harsh wood tones noted which puts me at ease that it didn't get contaminated. Body is quite heavy whiskey seems to be as strong as ever in the taste but its fairly slick and smooth.

Overall not if aging has improved or decreased anything for this beer I'm just glad it hasn't got any metal or wet cardboard taste.
Oct 11, 2022
Photo of hman43
Reviewed by hman43 from North Carolina

4.04/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Look: It pours black with a thick, tan head. Head retention is very good.

Smell: It has strong bourbon aromas with roast. It has dark fruit background note with plum and a hint of vanilla.

Taste: It has strong bourbon flavors with plenty of roast. There is a medium amount of dark fruit featuring plums and some raisins. There are some very low vanilla elements and a touch of dark cherry.

Feel: It is silky smooth with strong alcohol warming.

Overall, it's quite boozy, but not necessarily in a bad way. The flavors blend well together with strong warming.
Mar 13, 2022
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

4.36/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
12 oz can with a 29 October 2018 canning date and "patience justified" stamped on the bottom. The 2018 dates for both in and out of the barrel are on the label.
Patience justified indeed ... this is delicious and, while there's plenty of bourbon in both the aroma and the flavor, the high ABV is fairly well hidden. Smooth and full bodied with well set low carbonation. It has an excellent bitter-sweet balance and some burnt toast and woody bourbon barrel notes that linger in the aftertaste.
Overall. Recommended.
Aug 12, 2021
 
Rated: 4 by brittanylicious from Indiana

Apr 25, 2021
 
Rated: 4.1 by heysuz from Indiana

Apr 25, 2021
 
Rated: 4.08 by Dope from Massachusetts

Dec 22, 2020
 
Rated: 3.41 by Saylor from Pennsylvania

Sep 20, 2020
 
Rated: 4.06 by Mikexw from New York

Jul 29, 2020
 
Rated: 4.2 by DangerDawg from Ohio

Jun 17, 2020
Photo of BJB13
Reviewed by BJB13 from Maryland

4.25/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
12 ounce can poured into a small Tulip.
Canned 12/13/19.

Poured straight in to get almost three fingers of thick mocha brown foam that slowly recedes to a substantial foamy ring with a thin creamy cap. It pours dark cola brown but looks almost black in the glass and lets no light pass through. Each tilt of the glass shows legs and leaves some slick patches of lace. A strong nose is lead by bourbon barrel with molasses, dark fruit and some roast. There is also a hop aroma that is close to pine. Plenty of flavor, starting with sweet, but not overly so, bourbon, raisin, and molasses, then picking up some pine sap hoppy bitterness and bitter-sweet, almost tart, chocolate that draws out to a moderately long bitter finish with some char. A nice balance of malt to hop and sweet to bitter. It is full bodied with a medium viscous soft feel that is smooth and clean, no grit or astringency. It is carbonated to the low side of medium and finishes with some warmth.
I am calling it solid. This is an enjoyable sipper that is easily worth trying once.
May 22, 2020
 
Rated: 4.23 by jhlosito75 from Pennsylvania

May 10, 2020
Photo of hoptheology
Reviewed by hoptheology from California

4.15/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
12 oz can, purchased from Cottage Hill Package Liquor in Mobile, AL.
Date on can is 10/29/18, which means it sat in a bright tank or something for 7 days as the "date out of barrel" was 10/22/18 (date in barrel was 4/22/18).

Deep black color with a head of 1 finger to start, fleeting to a thin fingernail with moss on top.

Aroma of leather and molasses with elements of bourbon and wet whiskey barrel. Some dark chocolate and ash as well.

Flavor begins with a piney bitterness, followed by tobacco and ashen burnt malt, then fig, heavy cheap pot coffee, finishing on slight bourbon sweetness flecked with hints of brown sugar. Piney resinous aftertaste. As it warms the finish brings more tobacco to complexify the piney-bitter aftertaste.

Feel is a bit on the thin side but not thin in the general sense - I'd say it's more medium bodied, with a high carbonation comparable to a session coffee stout, with some added slickness and robustness, and lots of piney oily resinous coating on the finish. Heat is moderate to overwhelming - much like a pepper burn.

Overall this is not a bad BA stout, but it's not particularly fantastic. For $6 a can, I'd say one should expect more, and so my expectations were not met. I'll be trying the variants soon as well, hopefully they will fare better. Again - this is by no means a bad beer - but with all of the BA options out there these days, this one comes in punching a bit below its weight.

Price paid : $6.49 / can
Would buy again : maybe
May 10, 2020
 
Rated: 4.06 by BeerForMuscle from New Jersey

May 09, 2020
Photo of BBThunderbolt
Reviewed by BBThunderbolt from Kiribati

3.22/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3
Thanks to DonnieT79 for this one from NBS BIF #11. Date into barrels 4/22/18, date out of barrel 10/22/18, canned on 10/29/18. 12oz can poured into 14oz teku. Poured a solid black color with about 3/4 inch of dark tan head that had moderate retention and no lacing.

Bourbon was bold at the front of the aroma, with light roast and malt behind that. Hints of vanilla at the back.

The flavor profile started out similar, but a strong coffee note came through and really upset the balance. By the back of the palate, it was like drinking a straight up cup of coffee.

The body was the expected full and smooth, with a semi-dry finish.

Drinkability was a bit rough, for me, being the coffee hater that I am.

Overall, not my glass of beer. A well made brew, certainly, but the domination of the coffee is off-putting to me. Of course, YMMV.
Apr 05, 2020
 
Rated: 4.35 by Manta200 from Kentucky

Nov 24, 2019
 
Rated: 4.37 by akopczyk from Ohio

Nov 09, 2019
Photo of Brutaltruth
Reviewed by Brutaltruth from Ohio

4.35/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
From the growler via Party Town in NKY in a snifter. This
fantastical little beast pours a deep obsidian with a thin
brown highlight and a nice head of off white tan foam that settles
to a thick ring, thin clumping layer, and displays some very nice
lacing. Nose of rich bourbon, vanilla, dark coffee, dark chocolate,
and very subtle alcohol astringency. Flavors pack it in! Dark coffee,
toffee, dark chocolate fudge, and the bourbon---smooth, rich, earthy
oak, vanilla, and char over a brown sugar crusted top. Excellent.
Great mouth feel; full body, moderately warming, rich, light
carbonation, and a rich chocolate and coffee bourbon fueled
finish.

Overall, this is by far the most enticing brew I have had from this brewery
and can honestly say it is one of the best of this year. On par with
Clown Shoes. Give it a shot---24.95 a 1/2 gallon growler.

Cheers
Oct 24, 2019
 
Rated: 4.17 by Chuckdiesel24 from Illinois

Oct 20, 2019
 
Rated: 4.1 by dafla67 from Pennsylvania

May 01, 2019
Retribution from DuClaw Brewing Company
Beer rating: 92 out of 100 with 501 ratings