Maple Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Mexican Biscotti Cake Break
Evil Twin Brewing

Poured at 54°. Reddish brown mixed bubbles head; poor cap retention; small island of micro dots; spotty lacing on agitation; thin legs; black body with ruby edges. Bourbon, chocolate and almonds nose; a bit of boozy bourbon on exhale. Chocolate fudge front and center, sweet maple syrup close behind; almonds and vanilla; no coffee; surprisingly mild hot habanero peppers; bourbon on backend; sweet chocolate and almond/biscotti cookie finish. Thick full body and not adjuncty; creamy smooth feel; some peppery bite on tip of tongue; minimal warmth from 10.5% abv; light carbonation. Overall, this variant may be my favorite Westbrook “Cake”!; layers of flavors - mild peppers heat, almost nonexistent cinnamon from base yet chocolate is strong and fudgy; bourbon is present and accounted for, as is sweet maple; taste is chocolate dipped biscotti full of almonds, with a side of mild hot sauce…no oxidation after almost 5 years…this beer held up and is drinking mighty fine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

22oz bottle. No dating information found on bottle nor on label.
Black colored body. Dark tan fizzy head disappears right away, but there is active surface action from rising bubbles, which leaves a thin ring. Each sip leaves behind thin irregular lines of lacing.
Big bourbon note on the nose, along with cinnamon, chocolate, and vanilla. The aroma is dense and deep. There is a wisp of peppers. Has a very solid core of dark roasted malts.
The taste seems sweet at first, and then towards the end there is a slight burn from the peppers. I get a flavor that reminds me of shredded coconut, but this is likely from the vanilla and almond. The chocolate is quite prominent. The cinnamon I get is mixed with the peppers, for that spice note.
Mouth feel is medium, but the texture is quite smooth, and has a slight mouth coating effect. Allowing the beer to sit on the tongue really brings out the pepper sting. Lower than average carbonation.
The maple really stands out at the beginning, and adds to the sweetness, and adds to the syrup quality. The bourbon is more evident in the aroma, and while it adds to the flavor, the bourbon does not overwhelm. Well balanced and full of flavors. Except for the bourbon nose, the alcohol is well hidden in the drinking experience. The coffee blends well with the other flavors and does not bring out any bitterness.

 

 

 

22 ounce bottle into snifter, no bottle dating. Pours dense pitch black color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy dark brown brad with great retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roasted coffee, roasted almonds, cinnamon, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, maple syrup, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, biscuit, and dark/brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, habanero peppers, smoke, raisin, prune, fig, date, leather, tobacco, herbal, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. A bit too fruity/yeasty, increasing barrel booze as it warms, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, cinnamon, almond, cocoa nibs, vanilla, maple bourbon barrels, and light-moderate habanero pepper notes; with great strength. Taste of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roasted coffee, roasted almonds, cinnamon, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, maple syrup, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, biscuit, and dark/brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, habanero peppers, smoke, raisin, prune, fig, date, leather, tobacco, herbal, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. Very mild herbal, grassy, roasted bitterness; and bourbon/oak, cinnamon, habanero spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roasted coffee, roasted almonds, cinnamon, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, maple syrup, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, biscuit, dark/brown bread/crust, light molasses/licorice/pepper, smoke, dark fruit, leather, tobacco, herbal, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness on the finish for a while. Amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, cinnamon, almond, cocoa nibs, vanilla, maple bourbon barrels, and light-moderate habanero pepper flavors; with a great roasted bitter/sweet and bourbon/oak/spicy balance; with no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness, cinnamon/pepper spiciness, and bourbon/oak tannins after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mild increasing warmth of 10.5%, with minimal lingering barrel booze or pepper heat after the finish. Overall this is an amazing spiced/flavored imperial stout! All around incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, cinnamon, almond, cocoa nibs, vanilla, maple bourbon barrels, and light-moderate habanero pepper flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV, with the mildly bitter/spicy/tannic/drying finish. Perfectly balanced between rich malts, flavorings, and maple bourbon barrel presence/integration. Not overwhelming on any aspect. A highly enjoyable offering, and amazing style example. Not as spicy as I expected(likely mellowed out from aging); but still top tier for a flavored stout as expected of both breweries. Probably the original 1.5 year old release.

Don't get me wrong it's a very nice-tasting beer. But I was a little surprised at the lack of a burn, especially since the aroma promised more spice than what I got. Personally would not have known there were habaneros added had it not been advertised on the bottle. Most of the spice comes from the cinnamon, I think. Anyway, along with cinnamon--dark chocolate, anise, vanilla. Not really getting so much coffee, but I think the smoky/charcoalish note might be a product of that. So, all in all, still very tasty. Well-balanced too, with a good smooth full-bodied mouthfeel.

 

 

 

I got this beer with maple barrel and biscotti, plus a load of other ingredients. The ingredient list somewhat long. I think they will work together, I will see. I served the beer in a tulip glass at 45 degrees. The pour on the beer produced a one finger dark brown head that is creamy and frothy. The retention on the head is dismal. It came and went particularly fast. The color of the beer is SRM 37 dark brown nearly black. No other visible signs. I did notice the beer was gurgling out of the bottle like syrup.

The initial aroma of the beer is maple and vanilla, and bourbon. Next, I get green vegetables, dark chocolate, molasses, anise, dark roasted malt, char, soy sauce, smokiness, oranges, wood, herbal, floral, peppery, cereal, malty sweetness, burnt sugar, baking spices, alcohol, and nutty.

The flavors of the beer explode on the palate. I get nuts, bourbon, vanilla, char, smokiness, cereal grains, cake, wood, oranges, dark chocolate, deep earthiness, herbal, floral, burnt sugar baking spices, malty sweetness, molasses, toffee, oats, caramel, roasted malts, anise, and alcohol warming. The peppery notes come on the back end of the beer after the alcohol warms your throat the pepper linger to let you know hey I am here.

The mouthfeel of the beer is chewy and dry.

The body of the beer is full, low carbonation, and a full finish.

This beer is incredible. The flavors abound and are endless. I only pulled the flavors that are familiar to me. I was worried that this beer was overloaded with ingredients, somehow it works harmoniously. The beer has balance and loads of flavor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fizzy head, quickly disappearing.

Strong, boozy nose. Some maple and coconut, and some bourbon.

Sweet, strong, dark, spicy. Maple shines through, and there’s plenty of habanero heat.

 

 

 

8/23/18 2017 Vintage bottle 4.38/5 This variant is lesser on the heat with all the maple-sweetened, bourbon goodness. Not as subtle on the vanilla and coconut.

22 ounce bottle, don’t see a date but picked up early 2018. Poured into a tulip.
Dark as night with a luscious chocolate color head. Little to no stickiness and it recedes quickly. The nose is prunes, molasses, vanilla and ethanol.
Holy sweetness! I’m not comparing this to CBS or any other maple beer out there but this is not CBS. Chocolate fudge, hot fudge, all the fudge. There’s vanilla, just a hint of spice, cinnamon and maple candy. It finishes with some woodiness or bourbon, but mostly maple syrup. There’s no heat. It’s very sweet.
One thing it has is that velvety, chewy body. I long for stouts with that mouthfeel.
While this beer sounds interesting, the maple barrel just overpowers the beer. I much prefer the non BA version to this.

22oz bottle from a friend. Served in a Barrel and Barley teku. Enjoyed 7/26/18.

Pours midnight black with a fingers worth of deep tan head. Almost no retention- a spotty rail and little else.

Smells of maple glazed brownies, bourbon, cinnamon, wet wood and some distant chili peppers.

Deliciously sweet booze is my first impression on the flavor. Chocolate, bourbon, maple syrup, coffee, almond cookies, wet woodsy vanilla, cinnamon, coconut, vague peppers and a noticeable element of alcohol. Layer upon layers of complementary tastes make for an enjoyable sipper.

Full, robust body with gentle carbonation. The finish is like bourbon soaked maple glazed chocolate spice cake.

Westbrook and Evil Twin work well together and this os no exception. A decadently delicious barrel treatment for an already successful collaboration. I highly recommend giving this a try if you have the opportunity.

 

 

 

 

 

Pours an inky black with a mocha-colored head that quickly dissipates towards the edges. Nose is rich and decadent - rich chocolate, maple syrup and a hint of cinnamon. Taste reveals cinnamon upfront, followed by maple and rolling into a long, lingering chocolatey quality. Mouthfeel is light-medium in body with an even carbonation. Overall, a nice balance of flavors without being cloying. The barrel adds a nice element to the base beer.