Gates Of S'mordor - Bourbon Barrel-Aged
Westbrook Brewing Co.

04/01/25 bottle @ home

 

Brief Review:

O: Another shout out to my work buddy for grabbing this on a recent trip. So this is my first foray into Westbrook stouts and BA stuff. Had some of their sours and liked them. Right up front, the pour is amazing. Haven't seen a beer this slick and black and thick since maybe Dark Lord. Really wish the newer BCBS stuff looked like this. Mouthfeel follows just as chewy and I love it. The flavor leaves a little bit to be desired though. The individual flavors of the graham, chocolate and marshmallow don't really pop for me, nor do they even blend. There's a little burntness to this, maybe from the barrel. A touch too sweet on the finish too. I bet if they cleaned up some of the flavors on this thing, it'd be a lot better.

Recommendation: Can't speak for other Westbrook BA stouts, but this one is decent for me. Maybe not worth totally going out of your way though.

 

On tap at Westbrook. Black. Smells of oak, bourbon, nutty malts, marshmallow. Tastes of strong roasted malt, dry oak, spicy oak notes, marshmallow, hints of cinnamon, lots of bourbon. Heavy, moderately sweet. It's slow to drink, but my small pour was good. More barrel and malt than adjunct, which I appreciate.

Great name, being Westbrook it could be fantastic, or could be diabetes level sweet
Pours heavy and thick, pitch black, small foamy head, low retention, long legs

Nose starts a lot like BCBS, dark heavy roasted malts and dark dark chocolate cocoa, fudgey, baking chocolate, dark coffee, a hint smokey from roast, then burnt marshmallow, like actual marshmallow, background I do get some cinnamon and graham cracker notes, rich and very sweet caramel, a bit of vanilla barrel and mild bourbon barrel juice, baking spices

Taste fair sweetness thankfully not a lot, interesting coconut up front, not sure if actual coconut or barrel, a bit of vanilla oak, a bit of bourbon barrel juice, sweet tasting caramel, thick caramel, but not actually too sweet, fair dark chocolate, baker's chocolate, caramelized burnt marshmallow as well, a bit of baking spice from the malts and barrel and a bit of actual cinnamon, touch of graham cracker and wafer cookie, nougat, somehow a bit fruity as well, overall fair sweetness but not too much, a touch of warming alcohol flavor, little roasty bitterness, mild sweet finish but not too much, a bit more bitterness, a bit more barrel
Interestingly I think I found a small piece of spent grain shell which is quite interesting that it got through the process, but not a bad thing since I enjoy those as a homebrewer

Mouth is full bod, very rich chewy like, med frothy carb, light warming alcohol smooth and hidden well

Overall this was quite nice, not too sweet, nice balance, decent bourbon barrel notes, good marshmallow and cinnamon graham cracker without going over the top, nicely balanced, good chocolate layers, a barleywine level caramel as well, quite enjoyable but slow sipper since it's so intense

Pours dark, mocha head fades fairly quickly. Very nice aroma - loads of chocolate, graham cracker, vanilla. Flavor is good - chocolate, graham, vanilla, lactose?. Exceptionally thin, carbonation heightens the lack of body. Overall, an extremely tasty BA beer, needs more body...

5/7/21
Bomber, 2021 release
4.5 rating

 

L: black, thin tan head, minimal lacing
S: bourbon, chocolate and vanilla, great nose
T: follows the nose, with some roasted malts
F: good mouthfeel, booze is very present
O: way better than the non-BA version

 

Appearance - The beer poured a murky brownish-black color with a dark tan head.

Smell - The nose was mostly composed of the adjuncts with sweet and sticky bourbon.

Taste - The bourbon added a new level of sweetness to the base beer. With the bourbon was chocolate, cinnamon spice, and a touch of marshmallow. As it warmed, it became chocolate covered marshmallows aged in bourbon. There was a nice a nice cookie backbone. The sweet bourbon carried to the finish.

Mouthfeel - The bourbon added a stickiness over the base beer that allowed this to stick to the tongue.

Overall - Bourbon aging adding something wonderful to the base beer.

 

 

 

 

Good viscosity on the pour; a deep brown coloration with ivory head that bubbles and is quick to settle flat.

The nose is rich with chocolate and marshmallow, with the battle complimenting nicely. Not overly boozy, not overly pastry. As it opens up a little more, the graham crackers and cinnamon complete that s’mores profile in a way that the non barrel-aged version never did.

The barrel is a little more present on the palate here, but the marshmallow and cocoa nibs still shine. There’s a good amount of oaky booze after it settles on the tongue, but the balance is excellent. Not as much “s’mores” as the nose, but the contrast between nose and palate really works. There’s the subtlest touch of dark fruit on the tail that gives an added bit of complexity.

Medium-bodied and smooth. Could use maybe a bit more viscosity, but the low, soft carbonation really works and it finishes with a good level of warm booze in the finish.

 

 

This one pours a dark black color, with a small white head, and not much lacing.

This smells like graham cracker, chocolate fudge, bourbon, vanilla, marshmallow, and caramel.

This is big, sticky, sweet and well done. There's a lot of of marshmallow and vanilla, and luckily not too much cinnamon and more of an emphasis on graham cracker. The base stout is super fudgy, obviously enhanced by the added chocolate. There's a good heat from the barrel, some caramel and oak, and a silky flavor.

This is medium bodied, smooth, and not very boozy, with a very creamy feel to it.

Westbrook always tends to do this sort of thing very well. I'd love to try the maple BA version at this point.