Learning From Las Vegas
Breakside Brewery - SE Taproom

22oz bottle picked up at Big Head's Bottle Shop in Missoula, MT
Poured into a Bissell Brothers tulip

2025 release

P black w/ 1f foamy khaki head
N milk chocolate followed by dark fruit; pleasant
T delicious blend of milk chocolate, dark fruit, barrel/peaty notes, light pipe tobacco, and vanilla, w/ a barrel finish; good flavor balance/contrast; mild to moderate heat
Mf med to med-full bodied; soft-med carb w/ some creaminess
O another extremely solid BA imperial stout from Breakside; really been digging their barrel program!

Review date: 01.19.26
Bottle date: 2025

 

2025 Vintage
Many thx to muchloverforhops3 for this bottle!

A - Black pour with a dense toasted caramel creamy lacing ring.

S - Chocolate, peat, light spice, and Whiskey.

T - Toasted cocoa, chocolate, Whiskey, spice, oak, and some delicate char / smoke.

M - Big silky, viscous body and leaves a light, sticky, residue on the lips.

O - This is a really nice BA beer!!

 

22-ounce bottle picked up at Breakside's Beaverton location. No date stamp, but the label notes that this beer is a "Vintage 2025". Enjoyed in an English tulip-style half pint glass.

Look:
The body is black with smoky topaz highlights. The foam is cocoa brown and it doesn't last long, but the beer displays more legs than Safeway's weekly "Cheep Chicken" deal.

Smell:
The nose is dark chocolate frosting, oak, scorched marshmallow, black licorice, smoke, and molasses. There's plenty of booze wafting up from the surface, with peated whisky taking first place ahead of bourbon. (Rather impressive, considering that less than 20% of the blend was aged in a peated whiskey barrel, and only for 6 months at that.)

Taste:
Flavor follows faithfully, with plenty of dark chocolate looming above an undertow of peated whiskey. There's almost enough smoke in here to qualify for a mention in the "Smoked Beer Appreciation Thread." Beyond that, there's a layer of plums and figs with a few dark cherries in the mix. Sweetness peaks in the middle, with more dark chocolate, a spoonful of molasses (a Breakside signature!), and a swirl of caramel. Bourbon makes a bid for attention as it rides along with the sweetness. The long-lasting finish is hot and boozy, laden with bittersweet chocolate and a handful of Beer Nuts.

Feel:
Full-bodied with a luxurious velvety texture. Alcohol is pretty brazen.

Overall:
This, friends, is a beast. The huge sweetness is tempered by an extravagant assortment of flavors, including a prominent peated whiskey character which fits this beer like a custom-tailored suit. But there's no leash on the alcohol, which is my main complaint. Dial down the heat, or even drop the ABV by a point (and a half?), and this would be one of the best beers of the year. As it stands, it's still more than good enough to invest in another bottle or two for the winter. Highly recommended.

This beer pours a dark reddish-brown color with no head to speak of. Aroma is sweet, alcohol and a mix of whiskey and taste is the same with some Scotch peat & plum. Different taste than most barrel aged Stouts.