Commonwealth Connections #9 Distillers Breakfast
Braxton Brewing Company - Braxton Covington

Bold, braxen and proudly displaying the uniqueness of Blanton’s bourbon, Braxton extends their Private Barrel series with an imperial pastry stout aged in those famous bourbon barrels for added charm and complexity.

Jet black and held in an onyx-like sheen, Commonwealth Connections #9 releases a bubbly and arid mocha froth with an emboldened scent of espresso roast, whisky spice, dark chocolate and barrel nuances for a roasty and robust perfume. Its deep and savory sweetness hits the tongue with force to bring out malty rich flavors of molasses, bittersweet chocolate, vanilla cream and a hint of promised maple.

Roast and spice rise to rival the sweetness and eventually overtake the sugars, anything pastry or batter-like are tempered with dark roast coffee, cocoa, heavy roasted nuttiness, soilsh roast and an earthen bitterness that highlights the beer’s smoky roast. Hinging on ash and roast derived astringency, the flavor of Blanton’s is strong, highly identifiable and clear to the tastebuds.

Full bodied but certainly shy of cloying, the roast leading stout is a forceful beer that brings out what’s best about the bourbon.