Early Bird Special - Bourbon Ex Maple Barrel-Aged
Aardwolf Brewing Company

Good head production for a barrel aged imperial stout with several additives. Good retention, as well.

Maple is strong on the nose, while the bourbon adds a boozy sweetness. Vanilla and coffee are quite strong, as well, while the cinnamon, at first overwhelmed by everything else going on, adds a nice spicy sharpness. Chocolate, molasses, brown sugar, toffee, and toast round out the profile.

More cinnamon on the palate, really cutting through everything else up front. Vanilla and cream accent the first third. Maple and bourbon do a wonderful dance on the second half, adding sweet sugary tones along with coconut and mildly sour mash. Coffee is most noticeable on the finish, with a dry, roasty bitterness, although I'm still smacking my lips from the maple and bourbon. Other tasting notes include sweet cherries, molasses, toast, toffee, nuts.

Building and noticeable back-end heat, but other than the full body, there's little other indication that this beer is so potent.

Another wonderful barrel aged imperial stout from Aardwolf. I'd personally like less cinnamon, allowing the coffee and the malt base to come through more expressively - although, obviously, cinnamon is kind of Early Bird Special's "thing." The maple bourbon barrel integration is nearly perfect.