Technical Challenge
Bottle Logic Brewing

Release date at brewery 5/2/21. Poured at 58°. Redish brown mixed bubbles head retreats quickly leaving a small island of micro dots and a thin ring at best; initially some soapy lace; black body with ruby edges; thick legs on swirl. Bourbon and orange zest nose; boozy hot exhale. Taste is chocolate, bourbon/alcohol; weak orange peel; bittersweet cacao nibs on back end; phenolic finish. Full minus body; thick viscous feel but not adjuncty; alcohol bite on tip of tongue; full mouth warmth from 13.7% abv; dry wooden barrel and rye tongue coating. Overall an excellent BBA Imperial Stout and the base tastes fine; the orange is probably a shell of its former self at almost 2 years old; still, some orange peel is present…I bet this beer was more vibrant fresh.

04/13/25 bottle @ home

 

 

500 ml bottle into a snifter. A 2021 release, had 4/21/23.

Pours near black and opaque, with no head and no real lacing. Aromas of chocolate, vanilla, malt, oak, some bourbon, some orange. Flavors of chocolate, vanilla, orange, malt, bourbon- much more as it warms, a little oak. Smooth, a bit creamy, a solid full body, appropriately carbonated.

The chocolate is the star, the orange shows well enough. The barrels have a complimentary role in this one. Pretty solid all the way around. Could use more orange, but I say that about every stout I’ve had with orange in it. Very nice.

 

 

Pours a deep black color with a short medium bodied tan colored head leaving a little lacing down the glass as it fades. Smells of the sweet Bottle Logic Stout aroma with a hint of orange at the end of it and some roasted malts in the middle. Tastes of deep roasted malts, hints of coffee, caramel, and orange in it. Smooth, rich, heavy feeling, overall another gem from Bottle Logic!

 

 

Obsidian black with a short but dark mocha head that starts off creamy but stealthily settles to a wide but flat collar.

The aroma kicks off with an intriguing nip of spicy, even hot bourbon followed by dark chocolate and toasted cacao nib accented by hints of slightly floral orange chews.

Taste sees the orange up front, just like chocolate covered jellied slices, but holy cow the barrel comes charging in tandem with the toasted cacao almost translating as caramelized brown sugar and even bitter Mexican coffee, all while being absurdly drinkable. As it warms, the barrel adds characteristics of fire roasted marshmallow and date.

The medium body has a nice viscosity to it, cut by a fine carbonation that comes to an amazingly chewy dry finish before warming the gullet all the way down.

Damn nice, this is far more than the sum of its parts.

Brownish black body with a sudsy brown head. Orange peel, spices, and bourbon lead the nose with chocolate malt supporting. Taste at first is pleasant with bourbon, semi-sweet chocolate, rye malt, subtle spices, and candied orange peel. But as it warms the orange takes over in a botanical and zesty way, almost perfume like. Feel is chewy, warm, not as smooth as one would expect for BL, but has plenty of malt depth.

 

 

 

 

 

man, did everybody just stop using BA? almost none of the Fundamental Coordinates are here... except for the goons who add stuff just for the 'karma'.... the orange is nice and reminds me of those orange and choclate candies when i was a kid. i dont know about the cake, but this definitely reminds me of the candy.
Bourbon Barrel Aged Jaffa Cake-Inspired Chocolate + Orange Imperial Stout • 13.77% ABV • On your marks, get set, brew! Early last year we teamed up with our friends at Claremont Craft Ales to brew a Jaffa Cake-inspired Imperial Stout to age in bourbon barrels. One pandemic and a whole lot of Great British Bake Off bingeing later, we're proud to present our Techincal Challenge to the judges!
Technical Challenge was built on a chocolate malt-heavy imperial stout recipe with a healthy helping of rye double mash base for a bold, bouncy body. The brew was finished with Madagascar vanilla and a mountain of Ecuadorain cacao nibs to build a rich chocolate complexity, then steeped on California orange peels for a bright, beautiful citrus note.