French Vanilla Militia (2016)
3 Floyds Brewing Co.

French Vanilla Militia (2016)French Vanilla Militia (2016)
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From:
3 Floyds Brewing Co.
 
Indiana, United States
Style:
Russian Imperial Stout
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
100
Avg:
4.7 | pDev: 5.32%
Reviews:
35
Ratings:
166
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jun 19, 2021
Added:
Apr 22, 2016
Wants:
  151
Gots:
  31
Dark Lord Aged in Armagnac Barrels with Vanilla, Cocoa Nibs, and Coffee
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Lochnessmonster:
Photo of Lochnessmonster
Reviewed by Lochnessmonster from Florida

4.5/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Black as night and delicious as all get out - vanilla is the dominate flavor of course, but the other elements are peppered throughout, hitting your taste-buds at various points along the way. I will say it wasn't as boozy as I expected, which is probably a good thing, considering it still took me the better part of an hour to get through my pour.
Sep 11, 2016
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.75 by Rkitchen from Michigan

Jun 19, 2021
 
Rated: 4.78 by That_Bearded_Guy from California

Jul 21, 2020
 
Rated: 4.5 by XmnwildX12 from Minnesota

May 15, 2020
 
Rated: 4.54 by PrestigeWorldwide from Michigan

May 21, 2019
Photo of GuyFawkes
Reviewed by GuyFawkes from Illinois

4.5/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
2016 vintage (released spring 2016); drank 12/14/16 @ Harvest Hop Haus.

Bottle 363 of 1104.

Midnight black appearance.

Minimal dark khaki head; no lace.

Vanilla, rich mild chocolate & faint pepper heat notes in the nose.

Thick, sticky mouthfeel.

Vanilla, sweet chocolate & mild pepper flavors up front; rich port wine notes on the finish.

Complex & delicious; the pepper head didn't meld perfectly for me, but this is really splitting hairs!
Mar 25, 2019
 
Rated: 4.43 by BeerBeast from Florida

Dec 16, 2018
 
Rated: 4.61 by rodmanfor3 from Vermont

Aug 04, 2018
Photo of Sabtos
Reviewed by Sabtos from Ohio

4.69/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
Onyx black with a mocha fizz that quickly dies to leave a taut black surface.

This 2016 version, much like the 2018, has way more coffee than the 2017 runt. Mocha with tons of cocoa comes on strong, but so too does a noticeable woodiness that I didn’t get in either 2017 or 2018, making Armagnac the clear winner of the FVM barrel trifecta. On the palate is a really nice brandy burn that leads into a smoothing and thickening mocha ice cream with a sopping wet hot chocolate dunked vanilla bean marshmallow.

Sticky and dry, this one was complex and delicious.

Good god, did I get lucky finally getting a pour of this.
May 24, 2018
 
Rated: 4.86 by tmryan21 from Illinois

May 21, 2018
 
Rated: 4.69 by Dankacheese from Illinois

May 21, 2018
 
Rated: 4.22 by kmanjohnson from California

May 19, 2018
 
Rated: 4.75 by YvesB from Belgium

Apr 03, 2018
Photo of RAlmeida77
Reviewed by RAlmeida77 from Massachusetts

4.89/5  rDev +4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
2016 bottle poured into a teku. Thank you Ray for sharing this one.

Pours thick and viscous. Completely opaque black body with a small dark brown head that lingers but eventually reduces to leave behind some retention and lacing.
Aromas are straight chocolate, vanilla, oak, caramel.....reminds a bit of a dulce de lece. As this warms up, the aroma pops more and a bit of dark fruits show up in the end along with the coffee.
Taste is fudge, vanilla and bourbon. Picked up lots of barrel, dark chocolate, coffee, marshmallow and even a touch of caramel/toffee in there. Very decadent and sweet.
Mouthfeel was just perfect. Thick, viscous, rich and velvety. Coated the mouth and lingered on the palate.
Overall, this is another outstanding DL variant. Lots of layers of flavor here and nice barrel character. One of my favorites of the night.
Nov 19, 2017
Photo of gcamparone
Reviewed by gcamparone from Rhode Island

4.69/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
2016 bottle poured into a Dark Lord Teku. Thanks Ray for sharing this one.

Pours a thick viscous black body with a one finger dark brown head that reduces fairly slowly to leave some good retention and a bit of lacing.

Aromas are straight chocolate, vanilla, oak, caramel. Just as advertised. As it warms they become more potent, and a bit of dark fruit and coffee shines through.

On the tongue is fudgy vanilla-bourbon, lots of barrel here, dark chocolate and roasty coffee in the background, marshmallow, pretty sweet (sweeter than BVDL and BADL). Mouthfeel is spot on, very thick and viscous, rich and velvety.

Another great Dark Lord variant. Lots of vanilla here, almost as much as BVDL. More barrel
Nov 18, 2017
 
Rated: 4.71 by Futbolmanby from Michigan

Oct 13, 2017
 
Rated: 4.93 by Viperman1316 from Indiana

Oct 07, 2017
 
Rated: 4.93 by MeLoynes from Missouri

Sep 23, 2017
 
Rated: 4.79 by xt0n1cx from Virginia

Aug 01, 2017
 
Rated: 4.48 by kreg02 from Illinois

Jul 24, 2017
French Vanilla Militia (2016) from 3 Floyds Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 100 out of 100 with 166 ratings