Koselig BA-Stout
Toppling Goliath Brewing Company

Draft pour from the brewery.

Review: 2572
Name: Koselig
Brewery: Toppling Goliath Brewing
Location: Decora, IA
Style: Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout
ABV: 14.7%
Canned: 2025
Date: 07 March 2026
I know this beer is fresh; I got it last year at Assassin Day because Toppling barely finished bottling it. I am using a tulip glass and serving the beer at 54 degrees. The pour produced a frothy tan head with poor retention. The quick dissipation left no lacing on the glass, with nothing on the liquid. The color is inky black with dark mahogany hues, opaque, and charting at SRM 36. The stout's appearance is average; I was hoping for more head retention.
Nosing the glass, I notice toasted bread, cinnamon, vanilla, toffee, caramel, malty sweetness, and dates. Smelling the beer again, I noticed brown sugar, cereal grains, char, whiskey, wood, resin, light char, and light roasty notes.
I taste cereal, toffee, caramel, cinnamon, bourbon, molasses, raisins, and brown sugar. I am detecting a bit of resin, bready, malty sweetness, vanilla, leather, whiskey, roasty notes, earthiness, and dates.
The beer's mouthfeel is chewy and velvety, finishing with a coating and a touch of warmth. The body is heavy and has low carbonation.
Final Impression: I am impressed by this beer; although it is a bit sugary for my liking. It is the second cinnamon beer that I have enjoyed. The caramel and vanilla were muted; the imperial stout and barrel aging are more prominent in this beer. Overall, a nice beer to finish the night.

Koseling Bourbon-Aged Stout from Toppling Goliath. 16.9 fl oz bottle from Toppling Goliath, picked up last summer at the brewery. $ 30.00/$ 1.76/fl oz. In reefer at TG, stored at 40 F at home. Reviewed 31/01/26, review 3685. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Undated bottle, other than “200th Anniversary of the Norwegian Immigration to the United States.” (1825) Stored at home at 40 degrees F. Served at 55.5 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature is 60.4 degrees F.
Appearance – 4 – Basically looks like every other Imperial stout with no head/lacing.
First pour – Amber Brown (SRM 18), nearly opaque.
Body – Black (SRM 40), opaque. Under direct light, same. When rear-lite, same with light penetration at the edges, ruby at the bottom and amber at the top.
Head – None (Aggressive center pour) 0.3 cm ring of bubbles, Chamoisee and fizzy with no retention, quickly breaking into a 0.5 mm broken ring of tiny bubbles, constantly being renewed by carbonation.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 4.5 – Caramel. Hints of bourbon and cinnamon, no hops, no malt, no vanilla. No alcohol (14.7% ABV, as marked on the label).
Flavor – 4.5 – It begins slightly sweet with caramel and hints of bourbon. No hops, no vanilla. No alcohol. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Moderate gastric warming. Ends slightly sweet, with cinnamon just an afterthought.
Palate – 4 – Full: Edging into syrupy: Soft but lively carbonation.
Style: Follows the BA style description.
Final impression and summation: 4.25 Uncredited label art, although I suspect it’s associated with the Vesterheim Museum/Folk Art School. Both cinnamon and bourbon are understated – pleasant but secondary to the caramel taste and aroma. Personally, I’d preferred more cinnamon but I know I’m in the minority.

 

Toppling Goliath Koselig BBA Imperial Stout, 14.7% ABV. Pours moderately thick and black with no head. Leaves an oily sheen on the glass. Aroma is bourbon, vanilla, cinnamon, and caramel. Taste is strong caramel, plus cinnamon and vanilla. No bourbon burn. Decent mouthfeel, overall outstanding.

 

 

 

 

You can taste the apple and cinnamon in this, and I think the smooth oily feel reminds me of strudel or pie topping. I think chocolate and coffee pairs better with these kind of beers though.