Sea Monster (Blended/ Jack Daniel's Whisky Barrel Aged)
Ballast Point Brewing Company

Had this one at TJ's anniversary with my 2 drinking buddies... capra12 and schen9202... served out of a snifter.

A: Served a 1/4 finger chocolate fine head with little retention. Brew is black as I expect from an imperial stout. Lacing is web-like but scattered.

S: Strong whisky nose that complements hints of milk and dark chocolate, and roasted coffee beans.

T: Starts off with hints of coffee and oak. Whiskey and choclate come on strong towards the middle and fades into a dark fruit (prunes?) finish. Chocolate flavor lasts till the end here, barely clinging on all the way, but nevertheless detectable.

M: This is the downfall of this creation. Medium bodied and just too thing for the style and not enough to meld the flavors together. Oily mouthfeel as expected and finishes a bit too clean with just the whiskey remaining.

D: This is just a poor man's Founders KBS. Not as much body, not as much flavor, and not as balanced. HOWEVER, seeing as KBS is amazing, Sea Monster is at least in good company and worth a try. But if you can get the real thing, then just stick with that, there's not much more here.

First of all, just wanted to say thanks to Gabe for putting together this phenomenal lineup of Ballast Point beers at his restaurant (Beachwood BBQ). Enjoyed this beverage on 3/24/09 and reviewed from notes taken that night.

A: Just like any good old stout...black, with some translucent properties when held up to light. Not sure whether it was the glass or not, but the head was on the weaker side as was the lacing.

S: An extremely strong whiskey aroma which masks a lot of the dark malt character the original version typically has.

T: Similar to the aroma, but the malts seem to come through a bit more...but not too much. Some chocolate is detected on my palate along with the dark-roasted malts.

M: Carbonation was on the heavy side, but seemed to settle down as I waited for it to warm up. Full-body and viscous...which I loved!

D: Alcohol was evident and in my opinion took away from the flavor. But overall, a very tasty beer.

Overall: I like the barrel-aging, but I thought it really masked all the malt character. Other than that, this was a pretty good beer. A try it beer. Cheers!

On-tap at Beachwood, listed a Whiskey Barrel Aged Sea Monster Stout,

A: Pours black, with just a smattering of bubbles, looks a bit like a cask beer.

S: Good whiskey notes, full bourbon, vanilla, oak.

T: The flavour follows the nose and gives me the flavour I was expecting. The barrel character is there, but it doesn't take over the beer. Nice roasted malt, chocolate as well, a good mix. For me, an improvement over regular Sea Monster, which I was underwhelmed with.

M: Light on the tongue, almost flat at times, but has enough of a body from the residual sugars.

D: I liked this one a bit from BP, probably 3rd out of 5 for the night, glad I got to try it.

Sampled at Ballast Point's 12th Anniversary Party on 10/25/08, reviewed from notes

A-Pretty much black with some ruby red around the edges, 3/4 inch creamy light tan head that stuck around for almost ten minutes, nice retention, minimal lacing
S-You can really smell the Jack Daniel's, some oak and vanilla as well, whiskey overshadows mostly everything else, although there is a misplaced tarty aroma
T-Starts off immediately with this weird tarty flavor that tastes like bad sour mash from the whiskey, fades into some roasted malts in the middle, some more of the tart in the finish to go along with some spicier whiskey notes, gets less appealing over time as it warms, overly boozy for how low in alcohol it is, not very enjoyable
M-Roasted, dry, tart, and hot mouthfeel, medium bodied but on the thinner side, level of carbonation is pretty high, taste lingers a long time
D-Could drink much more than a few ounces of this, heavy on the stomach, taste is not appealing, especially once it warms, ABV is fairly low but not hidden, far from smooth

I really enjoy the standard Sea Monster and the bourbon barrel version, so this was a big disappointment, it had one of the weirdest tarty flavors I have ever tasted in a stout of this nature, would not drink again, might be worth trying

"Sea Monster Stout, by Ballast Point Brewing Co. 66% Fresh Sea Monster was Blended with 33% Sea Monster aged 6 Months in Whiskey Barrels, leaving a Tart Finish. Heavy Toasted Oak Chips Soaked in Jack Daniels and Amarillo Hops were added to the Cask's."

Well yes, tried this on cask at the PB TapRoom and took the liberty to copy their comments as seen above. I've tried the standard Sea Monster on tap before but haven't reviewed it. I would guess that I would give it a B+.

This brew pours a rich black into a pint glass with a frothy tan head, yet doesn't deliver the richness I would expect from the beer engine. Head retention and lacing are moderate at best.

Smells of cocoa slightly, or perhaps carob, yet rather thin. Taste is initially very welcoming but finishes with a tart sweetness that is rather cloying. Interesting that I had a definition in mind but couldn't find the word. Then, upon arriving home I read about the 'tart finish', and yes, that's exactly what it is. And sweet, a sweet tart!

Drink I would have to call average, depending upon your tartness threshold. Interestingly, a couple others I met seemed to enjoy this one nicely. I'd prefer the standard version without the tart bite of the whiskey barrel.