PANIC!
Galaxy Brewing Company

22 ounce bottle in a stout glass. Dated 3/17.

A very dark brown, near black, pour. Opaque. A dark tan colored, tall, cap tapers to a thick film and leaves some lacing.

The initial aroma is whiskey. Given a few minutes to breathe; oak, vanilla, maple, chocolate dark malt.

Whiskey flavors are there - oak, sweet vanilla, mild alcohol. The chocolate and whisky are smooth and mellowed from the 2 plus years of bottle time.

Smooth feel, modest body. Time has tamed the alcohol burn, there's still whiskey on the finish.

Not bad, but better suited for a small pour, end of the evening type stout.

this was without a doubt my favorite beer at galaxy, and i think eveyone in our group agreed. not only was it the most refined and polished beer we had in here, but it was also the most delicious. great base stout, lots of body, high luster, rich chocolate notes to it, balancing bitterness, hints of molasses and dark cocoa, and not so much alcohol that this is a one and done beer. i love it being under 9% abv, which is still plenty strong, but keeping i away from that 12% abv range allows me to have a couple of these and be alright. the barrel aging was obviously a success here, with some nice charred wood, sweet vanilla, and warming whiskey notes coming from the process. its sweet but not too much, and the barrel isnt so intense that it takes over the base beer, there is a nice balance there. great enhancement though, the vanilla notes flatter the dark malts, and the char adds needed rugged depth to it too. smooth and silky going down, nice aftertaste of sweet malt and woody whiskey. this was a pleasant surprise and easily the star of the show in here right now!

 

 

 

 

 

On tap at American Burger Bar and Beer Boutique.

This one pours a somewhat dark black, with a quarter inch head, and a little bit of lacing.

Smells kind of vaguely of bourbon, a bit of chocolate, not honestly a whole lot.

This one just falls flat for me. It's a got an unpleasant bitterness, with mild bourbon flavors. The stout underneath just doesn't feel all that good, either. It's hard to comment too much on this one, because there's just not all that much here.

This has a pretty thin body for a stout, with a lower level of carbonation. Not all that drinkable due to the boringness.

I like Galaxy a good amount, when they're on, they're on. However, this was not "on" at all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A: Poured into a pint glass; the liquid pours lighter than what I would expect from an RiS but looks promising. In the glass, the liquid is very dark brown that barely lets light shine through with a large fluffy tan head that leaves chunky gorgeous lacing as it dissipates slowly. The head that formed was very large, probably from a not so great pour.

S: I could smell deliciousness as soon as I cracked open the growler; the smell is incredibly strong, reaching me from a good distance away as a type this review. The smell is very dark: heavily roasted and malty, which is always a good thing. There is a hint of extra alcohol (probably the whisky from barrel-aging) that blends very well with the main darkness of the beer.

T: This beer is incredibly smooth, both of the alcohol of the beer itself and the whiskey barrels blending together well; the whisky leaves a tingling on your tongue, enticing more. The taste is malty and dark, very similar to its scent profile, with just a hint of bitterness. However, for a barrel-aged beer, this is very gentle and mellow, making it very easy to drink.

M: As said before, it is incredibly smooth which makes it lovely to drink. There are two different alcohol profiles. The initial is the burn of the whisky which gives away quickly to the body of the beverage. At the end, it lingers around your mouth, begging for more. I feel the mouth feel is really good.

O: This was a fantastic first brew to have from this brewery! RiS tend to be very bitter for me, making it less bearable than a normal stout. But Galaxy has aged this perfectly to remove the strength (to what they say they wanted to do) yet add in a whisky flavor profile. The mouthfeel is amazing, one of the best I've had from stouts. This is a great beer and I'll definitely be looking more into this brewery (and this stout)!