Buffalo Nickel
Double Nickel Brewing Company

Bottle No. 1465 of 1800. Poured into snifter glass. It pours a completely opaque black with one finger of mocha-colored head and lacing that dissipated quickly. It smells of roasted malt, black coffee, dark chocolate, caramel, and only a mild whiff of bourbon. The first taste is the roasted malt and dark chocolate. I'm not tasting the coffee that I smelled. There is a faint taste of caramel and the relatively subtle bourbon is noticeable at the finish. I'm missing the dark fruit that I enjoy in an Imperial Stout. For a stout, it's rather thinly-bodied. On the other hand, the bourbon is subtle and with an ABV of 8.5% it is not overpowering. Overall, after being wowed by Double NIckel's Marbled Buffalo, I was a little let down by the BA Stout. It's good, to be sure, but it lacks the "wow" factor of the BA rye ale.

 

 

 

 

Not terrible but the taste of alcohol is a little overpowering. The color is a little less interesting that I would have liked. The smell of the beer is a bit bland but the feel is slightly better. Overall there are many better choices in this style.

Pours very dark with a nice mocha head that fizzles out quickly. Nice chololate aroma, some molasses and brown sugar. Slightly thin mouthfeel, but not bad for 8.5% abv! Lots of bittersweet chocolate, burnt brown sugar, charred barrel, dark roast coffee. Carbonation helps out with a creamy mouthfeel. Overall I would call this the first "session BA imperial stout" I have ever tried. It is good, but I think the brewer could make this better if it were 11%. I like the beer, and bought a few to age. This was not a good idea. The first one I drank had a lot more flavor to it. This one is starting to fade, and the barrel feels more like a red wine barrel than a bourbon barrel. I would recommend drinking this beer fresh.

3:27/18
Bomber, 2016 vintage (fall 2016)
4 rating

Update - 5/9/21. This tastes way better after 4.5 years aging. Flavor really rounded out nicely, tastes like a BCBS. Body even got better!

A - Dark brown/black pour with thick tan colored lacing.

S - Oak, bourbon, cherry, light char, delicate spice.

T - Spicy bourbon and char, no more, no less.

M - Medium body with with some lip smacking stickiness.

O -

 

 

Satisfying. Although feels like a milk stout getting lost a little bit with the BA. That said the bourbon isn't overwhelming.

Pours black with a half inch tan head. Aroma is burbon and roasted notes. Taste is also burbon and roasted notes but neither is overpowering. Feel is a bit astringent, not too much but keeps it from being great. Overall, a nice drinkable BA stout just not best in class.

Traded for this a while back with a good friend up at the Cloverleaf, as I finally got around to this on yet another rainy spring day. First time ever having anything from Double Nickel as their offerings are not available in this part of the Garden State. Regardless, this was a nice first offering as it had to be one of the smoothest examples of the style that I've had in quite some time, if not ever!

The pour to this was what one would expect from a Stout of this sorts, as the beer was dark, black, and opaque with a moderate amount of toffee head that quickly settled. Lots of bourbon stickiness, toffee, coffee, and espresso in the nose as the more colorful notes came out in the taste. Bitter chocolate, raspberry, oak, caramel, and peat all came out in the taste as the Bourbon came out more but was nicely complemented by the chocolate and berry notes that gave it wonderful depth. A wonderful woody aftertaste served as a reminder as to how this was aged and how this differed from a typical Stout that had stronger roasted and boozier aspects.

Speaking of booze, there was plenty here but it was just the right amount as it complemented the range of flavors without overpowering them. While the fruit and chocolate presence wasn't strong, it was enough to elevate this up another level and keep this from feeling too ashen or sticky. A great brew that came across as an accessible example of this style. Shame that they don't distribute more to these parts!

 

**
03/05/2017

On tap at blend.

LOOK: dark black, medium light brown head.
AROMA: whiskey dominates,

TASTE: roasted malt, whiskey, pretty smooth.

FEEL: astringent bite, low to medium carbonation.

Very nice BA stout. Just had Weyerbacher SMS before and this hds it's own.
**