Nooner Batch 9 (Rye Whiskey Rare Dos with Vanilla)
Cycle Brewing

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled in 6/2015. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 2 finger dense and rocky tan head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Thick foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, vanilla, cream, toffee, spicy rye whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, smoke, oak char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. Minimal booze in the aromas as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/black/roast/bready malts, vanilla, rye whiskey barrels, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with big strength. Taste of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, vanilla, cream, toffee, spicy rye whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, smoke, oak char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. Mild herbal, grassy, roast, charred bitterness; and rye whiskey/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, vanilla, cream, toffee, spicy rye whiskey, toasted oak, biscuit, dark bread/crust, licorice, dark fruit, light smoke/char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, vanilla, rye whiskey barrels, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a great roasted bitter/sweet and rye whiskey/oak spiciness balance; with no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and rye whiskey/oak spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is great. Mild increasing warmth of 11%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic flavored barrel aged imperial stout. All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, vanilla, rye whiskey barrels, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV, with the mildly bitter/spicy/tannic/drying finish; great soft/silky feel for the ABV. Fantastic balance of super rich malts, vanilla, and rye whiskey barrel presence/integration. Mild earthy hops and fruity yeast. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and outstanding style example as expected. Aged extremely well.