The Last Nail
Fremont Brewing Company

On tap in Boise.

Extremely dark pour with a thin layer of dark khaki head left behind.

The nose leads with sticky sugars and spirit barrel, lots of molasses and licorice notes bordering on a berry note...bourbon is prominent, lending a warm finish that’s not unpleasant.

The taste really follows the nose, pleasant bourbon/oak sweetness combines well with the sticky molasses/burnt sugar notes that have to be coming from the licorice? Notes of milk chocolate as well. Warm but not boozy.

Fuller mouthfeel, lower carbonation, smooth, silky, and sticky.

This is a great beer, well worth seeking out - Fremont KILLS it with these stouts and barrel-aging.

i have no idea how this is distinct from the rusty nail, it seems like the same base beer, same special ingredients, same barrel treatment, same abv, all of it, and i cant find any information to tell me what makes this unique, so if anyone knows, please fill me in. i found this on tap, which was a treat, and the beer did not disappoint, although i did find it somewhat less striking than i did when i had the rusty nail for the first time. the combination of the cinnamon and the whiskey and the dark full bodied malt is just amazing, and the notes of licorice, tobacco, vanilla, brown sugar, black pepper, and anise are all still here, unified in a really compelling way. the two things that stood out here that i dont recall being as dramatic in the other one are the over the top sweetness, and the fiery alcohol, both of which are enormous in this, and i think take away a little bit from the taste. to be expected at this strength, but even a little of this beer is a lot. somehow the cinnamon seems a little less dramatic on tap too, but the depth of flavor on this is insane overall, and its hard to not just be wowed by this. fremont is so far ahead of the barrel ageing game, its not even close. this is delicious and wintery, a little too big for summer drinking, at least for me, but a privilege to drink any time of year.

edit: i have learned this is the same beer under a different name for the boise market where another brewery makes a beer called last nail. so really, this is just a comparison of vintages and draft vs bottle, not a review of an entirely new beer, but there are appreciable differences in the formats and years. either way, cool they still found a way to get it to idaho, i am thankful!