A Night To End All Dawns
Kane Brewing Company

Pours a super thick dark black in color. Darker tan head. Nose is sweet, like chocolate and caramel. Taste was also chocolate, caramel and also a btt char. Nice warmth from the ABV. I like this a lot and wish I have multiple bottles, but I do not! Glad this was shared with me.

Bringing a lot of acclaim to the beer glass, Kane Brewing's massive barrel-aged imperial stout spends fifteen months in the bourbon barrels showing that perfection cannot be rushed.

Jet black and cast in a shiny onyx-like sheen, A Night to End All Dawns floats a dainty coffee creme with a sultry, robust and roasty-sweet scent that encompasses deep espresso, chocolate, campfire, whisky and candied nuances. An early palate of malty sweetness shines in the darkness of blackstrap molasses, bittersweet chocolate, caramel and vanilla. Once the roasty char of dark roast coffee, smoldering embers and oaken char join the malts, the flavors of chocolate covered espresso bean draped in boubon warmth soon commands the finish.

Full bodied, perfectly aged and powerfully flavored shows why this stout wins so many palates and acclaim.

2025 vintage. It pours a dark walnut - nearly black - with a half finger cap of frothy, dark mocha foam that dissipated quickly leaving a ring and film of lacing. A big, fragrant nose featuring roasted malt, chocolate, coffee, toffee, nuts, leather, oak, wood smoke, and a strong smell of bourbon. It is delicious with notes of cocoa, freshly-brewed coffee, caramel/toffee, burnt nuts, nutty char, the slightest hint of dark fruit, and a strong dose of bourbon. While the flavors are big, they are also mellow and blend beautifully. This Stout has a velvety, almost chewy, mouthfeel with modest carbonation, and the 13.4% ABV is warming. Overall, ANTEAD is a magnificent Imperial Stout and one of the best beers brewed in the State of New Jersey. The base Stout is better than the variants released annually.

Older beer, 2018 vintage…for transparency with review and rating.

Pours a still black, quite and thick pour, minimal to know carbonation left; little bit of head formed but really nothing at all other than a little wimpy ring, at six years I'm surprised I got what I did.

Nose is bourbon, mostly oak driven with some vanilla component followed by light chocolate.

Taste is very rich; at first it’s got some soy like character, followed up by very rich lingering chocolate that is brownie like; ends with oak tannin and light bourbon.

Mouthfeel is full; thick, not overly so, very low carbonation, slight bitterness with a little bit of warming in the chest.

Notes. Had at Controlled Chaos festival @ Burly Oak / Nov 2022.
Massive rich BAIS that presented with strains of old ales. Deep dark malts and subdued hops enhanced with strains of wood, leather, dried fruit, Madeira.
Outstanding.

 

Pours a pure onyx black with a creamy tan head that lingers around the edge of the glass as you enjoy the beer. Gorgeous BA imperial stout. The first note on the nose when you crack this open is oak - LOADS of oak, followed by bourbon, caramel, vanilla, and milk chocolate.

The oak is forward on the taste, with a significant amount of rich caramel and milk chocolate which provide a touch of decadence, and a bit of stone fruit and some boozy heat at the back of the palate that settles warmly in your chest. Exceptionally balanced, flavorful, and comforting.

The mouthfeel is rich and velvety, adding to that comforting characteristic. This beer is a delightful indulgence for any beer nerd that loves big BA stouts.

 

 

2016 Vintage
750ml black wax top bottle poured into a snifter

A- pours jet black in color with a one-finger foamy dark khaki head that reduces to a thin ring around the glass

S- pronounced aroma of nutty mocha fudge brownie batter; chocolate, walnuts, charred malt reminiscent of burnt brownie crust. Plenty of barrel undertones popping through, adding a peppery note, as well as wet oak, caramel, vanilla and a hint of coconut. Traces of molasses, brown sugar and black licorice

T- sweet and malty with notes of cocoa, bitter dark chocolate, caramel and toffee up front. Mid-palate brings out a sharp oaky bourbon note, that adds cracked pepper and a touch of vanilla. The finish gives a umami note, followed by more dark chocolate and some charred malt. Lingers of oaky bourbon, chocolate and brownies

M- medium-heavy body with low carbonation leads to a velvety and silky mouthfeel that continues into a warming, silky finish

O- plenty of barrel to be found, it makes me wonder what it was like fresh. Regardless, a fantastic BA stout

Seems like a mess. Cinnamon up front? Some barrel wood coming through. Mouthfeel is sub-syrupy. Roasty meets sweet meets syrup meets cinnamon meets drain.

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle at share. Near black pour with a thin beige head. Aroma is roasty malts and bourbon. Taste come in sweet, sugary, dark malts, caramel and lots of oak.

 

2020 vintage - poured into a stout balloon at 50°F.

Glugs out a used motor oil colour, sitting black as night in the glass, with a short head of dark mocha head that quickly settles to a thin brown collar that persists. Slightly glass-coating, and rich looking. 4.25

Nose: STUNNING aroma. Rich, bold, deeply roasted malts exuding caramel, burned toffee, brown sugar, dark and semi-sweet chocolate, and chocolate liqueur. The bourbon barrel is so huge here - vanilla bean frosting, melted caramel, bourbon-soaked charred oak, cinnamon, spices, dusty wood, and age. Very reminiscent of Assassin. 4.5

Palate: ANTEAD greets the palate with a big hefty load of rich malty sweetness. Lots of caramel, brown sugar, and toffee. The roast is very dark and bold, thus, a firm, biting roasty bitterness quickly sweeps in and cuts that sweetness down fairly early on. Baker's cocoa, cacao nib, malt char  lend dryness, followed by a second punch of barrel char, oak spice, and a touch of booze. Massively bold and very roasty. The barrel lends vanilla, bourbon, and spicy heat which all become more apparent as it opens and warms. There's some subtle dark fruit - namely raisin, with a bit of a leathery accord and a whisper of dry tobacco. It quickly dries out, setting up the finish whixh showcases all that dark roast, char, barrel spice, and some oaky tannins, with nary a trace if that opening sweetness in sight. Dry cocoa and barrel linger on like a slow sunset, bringing upon the night - The Night To End All Dawns. 4.0

Mouthfeel/Body: This one suffers a little bit here. Within 10 minutes, it reached a stable point, drinking rather thin for how utterly bold and heavy this is. I'm not one to chase these hot fudge sundae stouts, but I do think a little viscosity can benefit a particularly aggressive stout, and I wish this were just a bit fuller. It's heavy - full-bodied, bold, and slick, but it is quite thin, and without much effervescence to speak of. It does, however, coat the lips pretty dramatically, allowing for a short sweet reprieve whilst being bombarded by the bold roast. Finishes fairly dry - drying, with a big roasty, tannic bite. 4.0

Overall: An enjoyable barrel-aged imperial stout, with a particularly nice bourbon barrel presence. All of the key components are in the right place here, though I find it's just a little imbalanced. If the roast were just slightly less aggressive, with some more malt complexity, and the body a bit fuller, this would be spectacular. Drinkability is slightly hindered by the acrid roast, but over the course of a full night, it opens up a bit. I wouldn't drink it again, but it's a well-made stout nonetheless. 3.75

Pours a nice black with good head. Smells like sweet licorice. Taste is a perfect balance with out the overwhelming bourbon, it’s just the right amount. So thick you can almost chew it. Maybe the best beer I’ve had from maybe the most underrated brewery out there! If Kane were in Vermont, it would be much more well known!