-
Stop lurking! Log in to search, post in our forums, review beers, see fewer ads, and more. — Todd, Founder of BeerAdvocate
Bourbon Barrel Stout (Clay Street Series)
Bluegrass Brewing Co. - East St. Matthew's
- From:
- Bluegrass Brewing Co. - East St. Matthew's
- Kentucky, United States
- Style:
- American Stout
- ABV:
- 8.6%
- Score:
- 76
- Avg:
- 3.32 | pDev: 20.48%
- Reviews:
- 178
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Dec 28, 2019
- Added:
- May 05, 2010
- Wants:
- 7
- Gots:
- 58
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Groomsy:
Reviewed by Groomsy from Kentucky
3.14/5 rDev -5.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
3.14/5 rDev -5.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
12 oz. bottle poured into a nonic. Bottled in September 2012.
An aggressive pour on this yields about a one-finger head of tan foam that fades rather quickly. Some alcohol legs are evident in the glass, but zero lacing is left on the glass. The beer itself is a very dark brown that does not let light through in the glass.
With this being a bourbon barrel stout, I was expecting a much "bigger" nose on this. What's there is nice, if a little too mild for my expectations. The first thing I notice is the scent of dark fruits. There's a slightly smoky back to it, as well as some coffee and roasted malt. I don't pick up much "bourbon" smell; made just a hint of woodiness and vanilla smell if I concentrate really hard. What's there isn't bad, but if you're going to do a barrel aged beer, ya better go big with it.
As far as taste goes, it's mild, but balanced. A good dose of malty sweetness hits the tongue at first with flavors of smoke, dark fruit, and some dried cocoa/milk chocolate. The bourbon really comes in on the finish with some drying alcohol and some woody/vanilla character. For being as mild as it is, this beer is still well-balanced, I think. Respectable.
The body of this beer is far too thin for the style, though. However, in its defense, its crisp, medium body is a nice contrast from what one would expect for the style. The alcohol is fairly drying on the finish, and the lingering smoke/chocolate flavors are nice. I'm scoring this fairly high because it was easy to drink for this kind of beer.
Overall, not a bad beer. I was expecting something much bolder in flavor, but I can see that the barrel aging didn't take the main focus here. My biggest beef is that the base beer, the stout, was fairly standard to begin with - if we were dealing with a top-notch stout as the base beer, this could have been great.
Feb 04, 2013An aggressive pour on this yields about a one-finger head of tan foam that fades rather quickly. Some alcohol legs are evident in the glass, but zero lacing is left on the glass. The beer itself is a very dark brown that does not let light through in the glass.
With this being a bourbon barrel stout, I was expecting a much "bigger" nose on this. What's there is nice, if a little too mild for my expectations. The first thing I notice is the scent of dark fruits. There's a slightly smoky back to it, as well as some coffee and roasted malt. I don't pick up much "bourbon" smell; made just a hint of woodiness and vanilla smell if I concentrate really hard. What's there isn't bad, but if you're going to do a barrel aged beer, ya better go big with it.
As far as taste goes, it's mild, but balanced. A good dose of malty sweetness hits the tongue at first with flavors of smoke, dark fruit, and some dried cocoa/milk chocolate. The bourbon really comes in on the finish with some drying alcohol and some woody/vanilla character. For being as mild as it is, this beer is still well-balanced, I think. Respectable.
The body of this beer is far too thin for the style, though. However, in its defense, its crisp, medium body is a nice contrast from what one would expect for the style. The alcohol is fairly drying on the finish, and the lingering smoke/chocolate flavors are nice. I'm scoring this fairly high because it was easy to drink for this kind of beer.
Overall, not a bad beer. I was expecting something much bolder in flavor, but I can see that the barrel aging didn't take the main focus here. My biggest beef is that the base beer, the stout, was fairly standard to begin with - if we were dealing with a top-notch stout as the base beer, this could have been great.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by 98green from Michigan
3.55/5 rDev +6.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
3.55/5 rDev +6.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Not sure I'm on the right beer, but I'm reviewing the standard BBA stout. On tap at Main Street location and I think on nitro. Dark black and opaque. Smell is oak and toffee. Taste brings more Carmel and that bourbon twang. Feel is very thin, and carb is nonexistent. My 2nd low carbed beer here. Is that intentional or bad process? Overall a decent BBA stout, but it won't put any whales out of business
May 30, 2016Reviewed by gopens44 from Virginia
2.97/5 rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
2.97/5 rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
This one is best described and left at as "thin, watery, underwhelming and as such, slightly useless given it's style." Now then, explained further, even though the nose comes close to carrying some depth of character in this, the wateri-ness overwhelms any bourbon, vanilla or coffee you'd expect in this type of beer. Almost as if it were watered down purposely.
Jan 17, 2016Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York
3.61/5 rDev +8.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.61/5 rDev +8.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
On tap at AW Shucks Bar and Grill in Norfolk, VA.
This one pours a dark-ish brown, nearly black, with a small foamy head, and not a lot of lacing.
Smells like light bourbon, vanilla, and chocolate, with very little roastiness.
This is fairly tasty, but a little bit thin, unfortunately. There's a slight amount of bourbon, with some caramel, vanilla, and chocolate. It's pretty sweet with a lower level of roastiness.
This is medium bodied, a little thin, with a lower level of carbonation.
Not bad, not great.
Sep 09, 2015This one pours a dark-ish brown, nearly black, with a small foamy head, and not a lot of lacing.
Smells like light bourbon, vanilla, and chocolate, with very little roastiness.
This is fairly tasty, but a little bit thin, unfortunately. There's a slight amount of bourbon, with some caramel, vanilla, and chocolate. It's pretty sweet with a lower level of roastiness.
This is medium bodied, a little thin, with a lower level of carbonation.
Not bad, not great.
Bourbon Barrel Stout (Clay Street Series) from Bluegrass Brewing Co. - East St. Matthew's
Beer rating:
76 out of
100 with
470 ratings
We love reviews (150 characters or more)! Check out: How to Review a Beer. You don't need to get fancy. Drop some thoughts on the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) plus your overall impression. Something that backs up your rating and helps others. Thanks!