Derby Pie Stout
Cellarmen's

12 ounce can into snifter, canned on 3/5/2018. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 1 finger fairly dense khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, nutty pecans, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, marshmallow, fudge, and dark/brown bread; with lighter notes of licorice, dark fruit, molasses, smoke, charcoal, herbal, pepper, and roast/toast/oak earthiness. Touch of booze in the aroma as it warmed, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malt, chocolate, vanilla, pecan, and bourbon barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, nutty pecans, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, marshmallow, fudge, and dark/brown bread; with lighter notes of licorice, dark fruit, molasses, smoke, charcoal, herbal, pepper, and roast/toast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate roast/char/herbal bitterness and light bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, nutty pecans, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, marshmallow, fudge, dark/brown bread, light licorice/dark fruit, smoke, charcoal, herbal, pepper, and roast/toast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, chocolate, vanilla, pecan, and bourbon barrel flavors; with a nice roast/hop bitter/sweet and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with no acrid/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from hop/char bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and fairly sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is nice. Mildly increasing warmth of 12%, with minimal barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is an awesome BBA flavored imperial stout. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, chocolate, vanilla, pecan, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV. A little too bitter, roasty, and drying than I expected for a dessert style; but very impressive. Very rich malt complexity, balanced chocolate/vanilla/pecan flavors; with great barrel integration/balance. A very enjoyable offering.