9th Anniversary Collaborative #9 BA Imperial Stout
Other Half Brewing - Center Street

 

 

Bottle. Black color. Little tan head. Oily thick.

Sweet and thick. Tons of vanilla. Cocoa and chocolate. Lots of barrel. Char and rye spice. Nice warming bourbon. Vanilla fudge bourbon cake. Smooth. Thick. Rich. Very nice.

Brewery notes: Tommy and Nick run HOMES Brewing in Ann Arbor and are making some of the funnest and best beer in Michigan. This bourbon barrel aged imperial stout is a blend of 17-22 month old barrels that Nick helped us select, which have then been conditioned on hefty amounts of cacao nibs and vanilla.

Quoting mrs wunderllama on the opening pour, “My god, that is motor oil. Black gold”

Chilled 500 ml bottle poured into a stemmed snifter, thick black viscous motor oil , no head, no lacings, thick, syrupy, sludge on the pour, obsidian

Aroma is bourbon, vanilla, chocolate

Taste is sweet bourbon, vanilla, slight char, cocoa, hint of spice,

Mouthfeel is boozy without the heat , thick, syrupy, heavy oil

Good beer

Look - Black thick syrup and lacing
Smell - Boozy chocolat vanilla slight barrel
Taste - really nice blend of the chocolate and vanilla, really boozt tasting and not as much barrel as I'd expect. Thinking the adjuncts are hiding the barrel.
Feel - Full body medium light carb
Overall - pretty nice cocoa vanilla ba stout

From a 500ml bottle, undated. Served in a German-engineered, precision-built spiegelau barrel-aged tulip glass.

Pours a thick-appearing cherry-black with no head formation whatsoever. An attempt to rouse up any sign of life only results in a super-slippery, caramel-colored oily film.

Nose is super-boozy, chocolatey and candy-like. Aroma of bourbon and Milky Way bars.

Tastes way hotter than 13%, like maybe they forgot to take some of the bourbon out of those barrels! Beyond the sheer booziness, I’m tasting Milky Way - chocolate, caramel and nougat - but with a small, sharp, baking chocolate, charred bitter note and a hit of Tabasco at the finish.

Feel is oily, heavy and dull with minimal super-fine, prickly carbonation. Substantial boozy warmth in the gullet.

Overall, eh, I guess this is what the kids are drinking these days. It’s a sweet and sticky mess. Hot and heavy and I don’t quite see the appeal. Sorry.

 

First times with a Homes / anyone collab. This is a tasty treat. Nose is bourbon and barrel heavy. Taste follows the aroma. Sweet malt base, but not cloying. The cacao nibs add a just-under liquer-esque tone. The vanilla is subdued by the aggressive bourbon, barrel, and cacao notes. The alcohol bites hard and fast up front, with a good amount of warming. Drinks even bigger than the 13% ABV would suggest. Overall, I think a fine OH stout.