Vanil - Maple Bourbon Barrel-Aged
Narrow Gauge Brewing Company

Dark black body. Big roast, bitter espresso when cold. As it warms, the vanilla starts really popping on the backend, slick marshmallow with some dark bean sweetness. The barrel is pretty light; not getting much maple or whiskey. Full bodied, low carb.

Thank you Lemmy187 for this one!

375ml bottle - batch 2 - poured into a balloon stem at 45°F.

Pours the deepest, darkest inky black, nary a bubble, collar, or any sign of life, sitting like a black hole of oblivion in the glass, and staining the wall like bourbon. Even a swirl produces no bubbles.

Nose: Wow, okay, so the aroma is fascinating. Vanilla bean like no tomorrow - but it doesn't go crazy like FO or BCBVS - it isn't a blast of frosting, it's genuinely just a fistfight of floral, heady Indian vanilla beans. The backbone presents fresh cacao nib, bourbon-soaked charred oak, and maple sugar. Not Aunt Jemima syrup - subtle, sweet woody maple. A hint of wintergreen from the vanilla as well. Organic and mature.

Palate: Vanil greets the palate with that big blast of bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout. The roast here is tasteful - not a caramel bomb, but actual roasty notes, with some baker's chocolate, a hint of char, treacle, and THEN caramel and brownie batter. Fairly sweet, but that roast cuts in quick. Vanilla is immediately apparent - potent, floral, and very natural - no frosting or extract flavours. The maple is extremely subtle, and it isn't breakfast stout maple - just a whisper of sweet woody sap. The barrel cuts in, with charred oak, tannins, and a bit of brown sugar, along with a pop of dark fruit. The roast peaks, lending some bitterness, and then falling back to reveal oak, and freshly scraped vanilla caviar. Dry finish.

Mouthfeel/Body: The beer is somehow thick and fluid at the same time. It greets you full-bodied with a fudgy viscosity and a bit of hefty chew, and then begins to thin out as the barrel and roast take over, becoming fairly fluid. There's virtually zero effervescence - just some slight underlying prickle, but virtually still.

Overall: A barrel-aged stout with a particularly nice vanilla presence. The base beer is great, although the finish does tend a little dry, bitter, and slightly metallic as it progresses. I'd like to see a bit more malt structure in the finish, a bit more maple character, and a bit more bourbon influence, but all-in-all, it's a great BBA vanilla stout. Maybe not up with the absolute best, but respectable nonetheless.