Double Oaked Ink
Rhinegeist Brewery

Pours out a clear, dark brown color, opaque in the glass; thick head, dense with a rounded sculptured cap, long-lasting. Fine nose; unique; initial sense of sweet red wine with a roasted grain backdrop; delicate cocoa underlayer; faint trace of oak. The taste builds on the smell; milk chocolate and caramel give way to a prominent red wine and booze aspect; tannins develop towards the finish. Heavy body; smooth with a slippery denseness; tannin dryness.

I love Ink and bourbon barrel aging. I have less love for red wine barrel aging. This beer amply exudes notes of imperial stout, the bourbon barrel aging is present, but in this case, the red wine barrel aging is the most dominant characteristic. Personally, the red wine presence doesn't thrill me, but considering the brewer's intent, they squarely hit the mark.

ABV: 12.1%; pouring temperature: 51.5 °F; bottling info: Vintage 2025
Source: Tavour

16.9 ounce bottle, 2023 vintage, thanks to Brutaltruth for this one! Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with about an inch tan head. Head retention and lacing are both good. I like the aroma, the brew smells like roasted malt, sherry, fudge, oak, rye whiskey and some dark fruit. For the most part I think the taste is similar to the aroma, but with the addition of some dark bread, burnt/charred malt, vanilla and coffee flavors. Good amount of barrel character here, and all the flavors mesh well together with no one flavor overpowering the others. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's slick, smooth and a bit coating with a moderate amount of soft carbonation. I think this is pretty good, wouldn't mind picking up another bottle if I see it around anywhere!

From the 1 pt 9 fl oz bottle in a snifter. This excellent imperial pours a
rugged and murky blackish brown with a moderate head of tan foam that
settles to a thick ring, thin wafting film, and sports some light lacing with
some nice legs. Nose of spicy rye whiskey, oak, vanilla, dark cocoa, faint char,
vinous sherry, and dark fruits dashed with brandy. Flavors hit the mark with
dark berry notes of blackberry and blueberry dancing about spicy rye whiskey,
oak, light vanilla, vinous sherry, brandy, brown sugars, dark cocoa, and dashed
with a touch of coffee and char. Mouth feel is full, smooth as silk, moderately
coating, rich, warming, light carbonation leaning towards medium light, and a
warming lightly bitter malt finish drenched in whiskey and sherry.

Overall, a FANTASTIC addition to the INK line!

Cheers

 

Double Oaked Ink - Aged in Rye Whiskey and Sherry Barrels! Barrels were selected by New Riff distillery.

Look - I mean just great stout stuff.

Nose - omg....that aged sherry meets oak and then gets that soy sauce aged chocolate malt, tanni thing only the best of the best stout can get. This noses like it was aged 5+ years but sherry casks can do that.

Taste - lovely! Chocolate, aged wine notes, toasted oak. This is weird....I haven't had a lot of sherry aged bourbon/stout beers but this is just straight up what 5+ year old imperial stouts taste like. It's adding these fruity esters and wine notes I get from aging, but they seem to match what the sherry cask did.

Bottom line - this is lovely.

My tiny deduction is that the carbonation is too strong while the oily stuff is a bit less well done. But age will PERFECTLY mellow that. This is epic!