Big Bad Baptist - Chocolate Banana
Epic Brewing Company

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a very dark mahogany brown, appearing nearly opaque in the glass with a half finger khaki head with good retention and slippery solid lacing. Aroma of dark toasted malt, banana, cocoa and oddly, peanut butter. Flavor is dark toasted malt, banana, vanilla, mild cocoa and light whiskey. Lingering authentic, light banana taste. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. The last of my BBBs I got from So Cal (have ave a few left from local stores). This version does deliver on the bananas, and in a good way, but the chocolate and whiskey are quite muted. The usual sturdy Epic BBB malt is present and solid. The banana is deftly handled, light at first, tasting more like a quite ripe banana, but the finish has a light, lingering banana-ripened-just-right note. I would have liked a bit more chocolate; this is closer to banana pie or pudding than a chocolate dipped banana. I am surprised that between the malt and cacao nibs that it's so light, but the overall flavor is still fine. Despite the mellow chocolate, one of the better variants.

16oz can poured into a snifter

A- pours deep brown in color with a one-finger creamy khaki head that has good retention


S- dark chocolate and caramel initially, as it warms it gives a big banana pudding note with some marshmallow undertones. A hint of char on the backend

T- sweet banana candy up front, like banana Runts. Sweet chocolate notes emerge, with the banana candy turning into a creamy banana pudding flavor. The finish gives a hint of charred malt with more sweet chocolate and banana on the linger

M- medium body with moderate carbonation, creamy mouthfeel and warming finish

Big Bad Baptist Chocolate Banana from Epic. Purchased from Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA, 26/04/25. 16 fl oz can, $12.00 (Including tax), $ 0.75/fl oz. Reviewed 08/05/25 (Review 3526). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on the can bottom “LOT# 21192 10%” but otherwise undated. Stored in reefer at the distributor, 39 degrees F at home; served at 55.0 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature is 62.2 degrees F.
Appearance – 4
First pour – Deep Amber (SRM 15), clear.
Body – Amber Brown (SRM 18), opaque. Under direct light, same. When rear-lite, same, but some light penetrates at the edges, amber.
Head – Average (Maximum 3.3 cm, aggressive center pour). Tan, high density with a rocky top, short retention, collapsing to a 0.8 cm crown and a thin, complete cap.
Lacing – Good. Multiple bands of near-microscopic bubbles connected by thin columns.
Aroma – 4 – Weak banana. No yeast, no hops, no alcohol, no roasted malt.
Flavor – 3.75 – Weak banana and ghostly cacao with just a touch of sweetness. No yeast, no hops. No alcohol (10 % ABV, according to the label). Whiskey barrels? No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Pleasantly mild gastric warming.
Palate – 3.5 – Medium: slightly creamy: soft but lively carbonation.
Style: Follows the loose style guidelines as condensed by BA.
Final impression and summation: 3.75 (After deducting 0.25 point for an undated container) Uncredited label artist. Less harsh whiskey overtones than most other variants of BBB – not noticeable in the aroma and barely evident in the taste. Weak amyl/isoamyl acetate aromas are present, kind of like someone in the brewhouse was eating a banana, but don’t last to the end.

Pours jet black with a small caramel head that goes away quickly. Super strong barrel banana and chocolate smell. Over powering banana taste to where it cancels out the chocolate l.

 

Not my favorite of the BBB beers.

Look: Pours as you’d expect - very deep black, although compared to others in the series it had a thicker head, but same copper color.

Smell: Bursting with banana and chocolate, it’s not a complex aroma profile but the banana is really pleasant. Also hints of caramel and toffee. The whiskey is a lot more subtle in this iteration than other versions of the BBB.

Taste: The banana is a bit more subtle on the taste, it’s more balanced with the chocolate than the aroma is. I can taste the caramel and possibly vanilla too, but the whiskey comes through stronger. Overall a pretty complex flavor profile that works well.

Feel: Heavy as expected. Carries 10% ABV. Long haul type of stout and does get better as it warms.

Overall: It’s not my favorite BBB version but it’s darn good nonetheless. Worth picking up but does carry high price tag.