Earlybird - Barrel-Aged
Wander Brewing
- From:
- Wander Brewing
- Washington, United States
- Style:
- American Imperial Stout
- ABV:
- 9.6%
- Score:
- +3 ratings needed
- Avg:
- 4.02 | pDev: 5.22%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 3
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Jan 24, 2025
- Added:
- Dec 24, 2017
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 1
NO SCORE
-
-
Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Breakfast Stout
We wake up Earlybird once a year after its long deep slumber in bourbon barrels. This sticky, sweet, bold, and fully refreshing imperial stout is brewed with lactose, oats, and coffee. The perfect addition to a well-balanced breakfast. Where’s the donuts?
We wake up Earlybird once a year after its long deep slumber in bourbon barrels. This sticky, sweet, bold, and fully refreshing imperial stout is brewed with lactose, oats, and coffee. The perfect addition to a well-balanced breakfast. Where’s the donuts?
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by BigIronH from Michigan
4/5 rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bourbon Barrel aged Earlybird from Wander brewing. Packaging indicates this is the 2022 release.
Pours a fully opaque black that reveals some cola hues when the sunlight glimmers onto my glass. Nose bring notes of vanilla, charred oak, black coffee, dark chocolate, and prunes. Taste follows suit with sweet chocolate and prune up front, some cola notes shining through, and finishing with an excellent vanilla/oak bourbon flavor. The taste of bourbon seems highlighted for me especially given the ABV. I drank a 15% stout yesterday that didn’t let the bourbon come through as much as this is. The feel is chewy but not mouth coating and is very smooth on the swallow. Overall, excellent. 4/5 across the board.
Oct 29, 2022Pours a fully opaque black that reveals some cola hues when the sunlight glimmers onto my glass. Nose bring notes of vanilla, charred oak, black coffee, dark chocolate, and prunes. Taste follows suit with sweet chocolate and prune up front, some cola notes shining through, and finishing with an excellent vanilla/oak bourbon flavor. The taste of bourbon seems highlighted for me especially given the ABV. I drank a 15% stout yesterday that didn’t let the bourbon come through as much as this is. The feel is chewy but not mouth coating and is very smooth on the swallow. Overall, excellent. 4/5 across the board.
Rated by erickc from Washington
4.08/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.08/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Had on tap at Special Brews Lynnwood, WA.
Nov 24, 2021
Reviewed by kemoarps from Washington
4.16/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
4.16/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
2017 bottle. Finally getting around to cracking open.
Dark brown bordering on black like dark black coffee. An aggressive pour yields a good finger or so swell of fuzzy dark dark/pale brown head. Settles back in to ring and some dense galaxy.
Nose is richly bitter coffee with a good vanilla/bourbon balance. Some fudgy chocolate as well. Really rich and inviting.
First impression is some tingly spice from the bourbon. This is aided by the sparkly carbonation and then a joint effort of alcohol heat and sweet vanilla and oak washes over. High bitter coffee note and a finish that's got some black coffee but a lot of chocolate syrup to it. Then a weird flash of like... ashy dry character/old diner coffee, but by the time you focus in on that it's already disappeared and the rich chocolate ribbon reasserts itself.
Body is thin but not watery. Isn't boozy per se, but definitely has some heat, and I actually might have guessed a couple of percentage points higher than the 9.6 on the bottle. Not unpleasant in this manner, just feels bigger than it is.
Digging it. Kind of ironic that the first review of a two year old beer was posted just the day before I do the same. I liked this quite a bit, but I think I would prefer it with just a touch less age on it (maybe 1 year instead of 2).
Oct 24, 2019Dark brown bordering on black like dark black coffee. An aggressive pour yields a good finger or so swell of fuzzy dark dark/pale brown head. Settles back in to ring and some dense galaxy.
Nose is richly bitter coffee with a good vanilla/bourbon balance. Some fudgy chocolate as well. Really rich and inviting.
First impression is some tingly spice from the bourbon. This is aided by the sparkly carbonation and then a joint effort of alcohol heat and sweet vanilla and oak washes over. High bitter coffee note and a finish that's got some black coffee but a lot of chocolate syrup to it. Then a weird flash of like... ashy dry character/old diner coffee, but by the time you focus in on that it's already disappeared and the rich chocolate ribbon reasserts itself.
Body is thin but not watery. Isn't boozy per se, but definitely has some heat, and I actually might have guessed a couple of percentage points higher than the 9.6 on the bottle. Not unpleasant in this manner, just feels bigger than it is.
Digging it. Kind of ironic that the first review of a two year old beer was posted just the day before I do the same. I liked this quite a bit, but I think I would prefer it with just a touch less age on it (maybe 1 year instead of 2).
Reviewed by Jeffo from Netherlands
3.54/5 rDev -11.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
3.54/5 rDev -11.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Got this one from rutger this past summer. Cheers, man!
From a 500ml bottle into a snifter
Imperial breakfast stout with lactose, dulee de leche, coffee and aged in bourbon barrels
APPEARANCE: Clear black pour yields a two finger, slightly looser, foamy, light tan head with okay retention. Black body with no carbonation. Head slowly recedes to a faint half wisp. A ring remains leaving no lacing on the glass.
SMELL: Bourbon, oak, vanilla cream aromas, milk sugars, milk chocolate and some definite coffee aromas as well. Bold aromas with lots of bourbon and coffee.
TASTE: Bourbon, oak, vanilla cream and coffee notes up front, then some booze at the swallow. Bold finish of roasted coffee, milk chocolate, bourbon, vanilla cream and touches of oak linger on the palate. Decent alcohol lingers as well.
PALATE: Medium-lighter body and medium carbonation. A touch airy on the palate, creamy enough, goes down okay and finishes a bit mouth-coating. Some decent heat lingers.
OVERALL: Flavorful and enjoyable. Coffee is nice and the barrel aging is definitely tasty. I’ve never had the base beer for this but the barreled version is good times. Thanks again, rutger!
Oct 23, 2019From a 500ml bottle into a snifter
Imperial breakfast stout with lactose, dulee de leche, coffee and aged in bourbon barrels
APPEARANCE: Clear black pour yields a two finger, slightly looser, foamy, light tan head with okay retention. Black body with no carbonation. Head slowly recedes to a faint half wisp. A ring remains leaving no lacing on the glass.
SMELL: Bourbon, oak, vanilla cream aromas, milk sugars, milk chocolate and some definite coffee aromas as well. Bold aromas with lots of bourbon and coffee.
TASTE: Bourbon, oak, vanilla cream and coffee notes up front, then some booze at the swallow. Bold finish of roasted coffee, milk chocolate, bourbon, vanilla cream and touches of oak linger on the palate. Decent alcohol lingers as well.
PALATE: Medium-lighter body and medium carbonation. A touch airy on the palate, creamy enough, goes down okay and finishes a bit mouth-coating. Some decent heat lingers.
OVERALL: Flavorful and enjoyable. Coffee is nice and the barrel aging is definitely tasty. I’ve never had the base beer for this but the barreled version is good times. Thanks again, rutger!
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