Dark Apparition - Bourbon Barrel-Aged - Vanilla & Coffee Beans
Jackie O's Taproom & Brewery

Beautiful black mahogany goddess. Absolutely elegant in presentation. Creamy mocha colored head settles into a thin ring.
Nose is gracefully warm in bourbon introduction. Slowly making space for some dates, figs, caramel, and a hint of char.
Flavor surprises with a pop of vanilla on top of the warm bourbon sweet. The other sweet notes carry a hint of char and coffee that tame the malts a bit.
Mouthfeel is a bit syrupy and sticky. The vanilla actually leaves a hint of a coat on the tongue. Sounds bad, but not. It's almost a vanilla meets mild bitterness to tamp down the sweet.

Fabulous, this is why I go to Jackie O's, to get these specials which they keep bringing into stock. Rich and great supper sipper. Chocolatey smell interestingly.

 

The pour is stout black, maybe darker, with a short brown head that dissipated slowly and left sparse lacing. Pretty standard for the style.
The taste, where to start? The coffee leads the charge, almost rye bread malt flavors followed and the vanilla dominates the finish. Had to take many sips to verify what I was tasting.
The feel is so good; ideal viscosity, not exactly lively on the tongue but not still by a long shot. Excellent sipping beer.
OA, like Jackie O’s variants of Dark Apparition, it’s very good. Got to help that they start with a great RIS.

Vanilla Coffee Bourbon Barrel Dark Apparition Imperial Stout from Jackie O’s.

Poured from a 12.7 oz bottle into a tulip, thick, opaque black with a quickly fading tan head leaving just a thin line of bubbles around the perimeter of the glass.

Nose is dark roast fresh brewed coffee at first. As it opens up the sweeter scents of vanilla and bourbon blend in nicely rounding out with some oaky barrel. This beer smells fantastic.

First trip across the pallet is dark bitter chocolate, black coffee and bourbon. Not much vanilla on first pull, but it’s there. Not sure if the bitterness is coming from the base beer or the additions, but I really dig it–no cloying sweetness sometimes found in these big beers. No noticeable bottling date but guessing this is pretty fresh.

Mouthfeel is chewy, viscous and smooth, really not much alcohol detected for a 13.9% Stout.

Overall, this is an excellently executed beer.

My bottle is 13.9%

Pours an effervescent ebony with a pinky of rapidly falling mocha colored head. Traces of head retention & lacing

S: Dark chocolate, Bourbon & vanilla, figs & pipe tobacco show up late to the party

T: Follows the nose, plenty of coffee, some oaky barrel dryness up front. More coffee, Bourbon notes, dark chocolate, barrel dryness, some woody hops as this beer warms up. Finishes with coffee, some booze-soaked vanilla, & more oaky notes

MF: Medium bodied/chewy, slight carbonation, warming. Body thins a touch & the carbonation picks up once warmed up

Super solid BA Imperial Stout that Coffee Fiends will really enjoy; great drinkability for the considerable heft

Look - Pitch black with a brown head that doesn't last very long.

Smell - Coffee, bourbon, molasses, malt, and vanilla.

Taste - Coffee, molasses, bourbon, and malt.

Feel - Lightly carbonated, very creamy and smooth.

Overall - For me, I'd have preferred less coffee, more vanilla, but a very nice stout nonetheless.

 

Pours near black with no discernable head. Nose great blend of bourbon, vanilla, and chocolate but not much coffee (bottle is several years old). Love the taste, bourbon is popping out with well balanced coffee and dark chocolate. Sweetness is restrained but so is the bigger body. Not thick but a good body with very light carbonation.

Poured cold from 12-ounce bottle into a skull-shaped snifter (because why the hell not? It's Halloween) and allowed to warm. Cola-colored pour, with a wisp of tan head and ruby highlights. Bourbon barrel takes center stage on both the nose and palate. Allowing it to warm brought out aromas and flavors of vanilla, coffee, molasses, char, a little black cherry, and a slightly spicy and astringent note. Silky mouthfeel, a bit boozy, with a lingering astringency on the finish. World-class offering from an amazing brewery.

Dark motor oil appearance
Medium light carbonation with a slick, thick feel
Aroma is an intense hit of bourbon ,malt, dark fruit, and some wood
Taste is mildly sweet, dry wood, bourbon, and an almost dry like spice.
Overall an excellent beer

draft pour into snifter. shiny pitch black with a thin mocha brown foam head. coffee and bourbon on the nose. tastes is more oak forward with chocolate, vanilla, coffee and bourbon. really tasty. full mouthfeel. super good. haven’t had any jackie o’s in a bit but this makes me super sad that i haven’t. damn good stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle at share. Definitely the highlight of the evening. Big Rich, sticky, sweet Stout. Barrel aging vanilla coffee chocolate, all coming together perfectly. Slick feel, oily, gentle warrant from the alcohol. Absolutely stellar.