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Vanilla Bean Assassin
Toppling Goliath Brewing Company
Beer Geek Stats
| Print Shelf Talker
- From:
- Toppling Goliath Brewing Company
- Iowa, United States
- Style:
- American Imperial Stout
Ranked #2 - ABV:
- 12.8%
- Score:
- 100
Ranked #2 - Avg:
- 4.8 | pDev: 5%
- Reviews:
- 21
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- May 06, 2023
- Added:
- Feb 23, 2014
- Wants:
- 266
- Gots:
- 3
SCORE
100
World-Class
100
World-Class
Notes:
Imperial stout aged in whiskey barrels and conditioned on vanilla beans.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by Bhubbard34 from Pennsylvania
4.86/5 rDev +1.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75
4.86/5 rDev +1.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75
12oz bottle…2022 version. Drank 12/25/22.
Pours dark brown/black, not much carbonation. Smells of sweet chocolate, vanilla, and barrel. Taste is marshmallows soaked in bourbon. Perfect sweetness. If there is a knock it’s slightly on the thin side, but that’s being picky. Probably the best adjunct stout I’ve had. Truly lives up to the hype.
Dec 25, 2022Pours dark brown/black, not much carbonation. Smells of sweet chocolate, vanilla, and barrel. Taste is marshmallows soaked in bourbon. Perfect sweetness. If there is a knock it’s slightly on the thin side, but that’s being picky. Probably the best adjunct stout I’ve had. Truly lives up to the hype.
Reviewed by Sandis from Minnesota
5/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
5/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
2022 version sample from a snifter at Toppling Goliath during Assassin release on 9/12/2022. The strong vanilla aroma and taste along with the viscosity make this beer about as good as it gets for me.
Oct 14, 2022
Reviewed by dboon from Florida
4.45/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
4.45/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
Bottle, graciously shared by Clark at Peg’s. Dark brown pour with a light brown head. Inviting vanilla bean and coco puff aromas. Sweet with delicious vanilla, rich caramel, decadent chocolate, and woody notes. Some heat from the whiskey, but not overwhelming. More of a backbeat really. Doesn’t drink like a 12%er. Smooth, but complex with a very good mouthfeel and body. Bravo......
May 15, 2022
Reviewed by SadMachine from New Jersey
4.68/5 rDev -2.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
4.68/5 rDev -2.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
Unofficially my last beer of the top 250 (had the trade secured for it before changes were made to calculations, making me 20 short again...)
It glugs out of the bottle super thick and tar black. It has a finger and a half head of tight, thick khaki bubbles that recedes slowly to a thin film and collar that retain throughout. Leaves some nice legs on the glass when swirled.
Immediate strong aromas of boozy bourbon are softened by sweet vanilla and lightly toasted marshmallow. Fudgey brownie batter, brown sugar, molasses, caramel, toasted coconut, and charred oak all follow. There's just a hint of figs linger in the background.
The flavor is quite bourbon forward, but very round and smooth. It's like a scoop of real vanilla bean ice cream topped with burnt caramel, artisan fudge, and a shot of high end bourbon. Nothing pops much except maybe the bourbon, but this is quite well balanced.
The mouth feel is thick, but not overly so. It's slick and coats the mouth well, lingering and begging you to take another sip. Just the right amount (only a touch) of carbonation, and a bone dry, slightly boozy finish. Superb!
Overall this is an absolute pleasure of a beer to drink, and a worthy one for my "last" of the 250 list! It doesn't blow me away in the flavor department, but it does in its balance and roundedness! Those are things hard to find in modern BA adjunct stouts! The fact that I could EASILY solo dome this bottle says something!
Jan 14, 2022It glugs out of the bottle super thick and tar black. It has a finger and a half head of tight, thick khaki bubbles that recedes slowly to a thin film and collar that retain throughout. Leaves some nice legs on the glass when swirled.
Immediate strong aromas of boozy bourbon are softened by sweet vanilla and lightly toasted marshmallow. Fudgey brownie batter, brown sugar, molasses, caramel, toasted coconut, and charred oak all follow. There's just a hint of figs linger in the background.
The flavor is quite bourbon forward, but very round and smooth. It's like a scoop of real vanilla bean ice cream topped with burnt caramel, artisan fudge, and a shot of high end bourbon. Nothing pops much except maybe the bourbon, but this is quite well balanced.
The mouth feel is thick, but not overly so. It's slick and coats the mouth well, lingering and begging you to take another sip. Just the right amount (only a touch) of carbonation, and a bone dry, slightly boozy finish. Superb!
Overall this is an absolute pleasure of a beer to drink, and a worthy one for my "last" of the 250 list! It doesn't blow me away in the flavor department, but it does in its balance and roundedness! Those are things hard to find in modern BA adjunct stouts! The fact that I could EASILY solo dome this bottle says something!
Reviewed by Hefewiseman from Florida
5/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
5/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
As far as vanilla barrel ages stouts go, it is hard to name a better one than this. Very sweet, but just short of cloying. The huge fudge notes blend perfectly with that intense vanilla marshmallow presence. Don't miss out on this one if you have a chance to get some!
Dec 13, 2021
Vanilla Bean Assassin from Toppling Goliath Brewing Company
Beer rating:
100 out of
100 with
136 ratings
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