Bourbon Barrel Aged Revenant
Magnify Brewing Company

 

12oz can from my brother. Near black pour, skin of beige head with a thicker ring. Aroma is chocolaty, sweet, roasty and boozy. Taste starts with chocolate, roast next, sweet and then the bourbon barrel eventually catching up. Sweet, strong and a nice bitterness that finds it's way through.

 

A thick boozy Russian Imperial Stout barrel aged with Willet with strong chocolate and coffee notes. Nice ABV of 11%.

 

Appearance: Pours nearly pitch black with a two finger head that quickly fades to a ringlet and archipelago; spotty lacing

Smell: Caramel, vanilla and oak tones from the barrel combined with charred malt and chocolate

Taste: The barrel makes its presence felt, from the outset, with the oak, caramel and vanilla blending with the chocolate and char; the charred malt aspect builds through the middle, along with some earthy bitterness from the hops; the finish is a bit boozy with more Bourbon flavor emerging

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with moderate carbonation

Overall: Nothing overwhelms and the flavors are approachable; not sure why this is labeled as an RIS as I don't get the dark fruit element I seek in that style

 

Reviewed less than two weeks after release. Poured from 12 oz. can into a snulip glass at 58°. It pours nearly black with more than a finger of fluffy, medium khaki head and rings of lacing inside the glass. For a barrel-aged stout it has very good head retention. I can smell the bourbon almost immediately along with dark chocolate, freshly-brewed coffee, earthy char, caramel/toffee, and just a whiff of dark fruit. However, the taste has less sweetness than I recall in the base stout. It opens with lots of char and bitterness. As it breathes I detect burnt coffee grounds and bakers chocolate. The Willett bourbon influence is noticeable but it doesn't overwhelm the other flavors and it doesn't seem particularly boozy. I'm not tasting any dark fruit. This stout is medium-bodied with low/moderate carbonation and it's very drinkable for 11% ABV. Overall, I wish there were more chocolate and dark fruit presence. Nonetheless, this is a very approachable barrel-aged RIS.