Trace
Brewery Bhavana

Poured from a 16oz can into a New Belgium Globe Glass

The beer pours dark brown (nearly black) with mahogany highlights and about 1 fingers of foamy tan head that slowly recedes leaving a small amount of lacing

The aroma is roasted malts, char, caramel, and a little bit of chocolate. I pick up a little bit of bourbon barrel, but not as much as I had hoped

The flavor is roasted malts, caramel, a little less char than in the aroma, chocolate, and maybe a little brown sugar. The bourbon barrel is very light handed, almost an afterthought. There is a hint of sour/tartness that becomes less prevalent as the beer warms. Medium/full bodied and mild carbonation, very smooth with a slightly creamy finish.

Overall, this is a really nice beer, though I would like to see more of a bourbon barrel presence

From Beer Drop, best by November 3rd 2026, 2025 edition.

Pours black with a small head of tan foam. Retention is good, as is the lacing.

The smell is roasted malt, coffee, some vanilla and bourbon.

The taste is roasted malt, Bourbon, coffee, I guess oatmeal, the Bourbon seems to be a supporting act in this Stout. Alcohol is noticeable but not prominent. I also get a slight tartness.

Only medium bodied, carbonation is fine, I would drink this again.

 

16 ounce can into a tulip snifter. The 2022 edition, had 10/27/24.

Pours an opaque dark brown, with a one and a half inch head of creamy foam and slick foamy lacing. Aromas of roasted malt, chocolate, some bourbon and coffee, light vanilla. Flavors of roasted malt, chocolate, some bourbon, light coffee. Smooth, a very good fuller body, well carbonated.

Smells like an oatmeal stout and tastes like one, too. It’s pretty straightforward, there’s not a lot of varied aroma and flavor notes. Well done and enjoyable, though.

 

2.5 year old can

Very strong appearance. Excellent head production and lacing, with good retention.

Very roasty nose. Notes of light char, toast, toffee, red grape, dark fruit, bread, cream, coffee, nuts. The bourbon does not particularly come through.

Very interesting on the palate. A lot more sourness than I was expecting - although not sour-sour. The bourbon barrels must be the primary culprit, as some bourbons lean more sour than sweet. Nothing uniquely bourbon stands out. Slight creaminess, and minor notes of powdery chocolate mid-sip. Red grape, toast, raspberry, cream.

Impressively creamy on the palate, far more so than most oatmeal stouts. You'd never guess this is in the double digit ABV range from the lack of alcohol sting.

Overall, this is really darn tasty, but I'm frankly not picking up on bourbon (other than the sourness it presumably imparts), so it's a bit of a conundrum in a can (a canundrum).

Nice bourbon and oak aroma and flavor with good roasted malt and chocolate character. Nice balance and lightly warming. Leans a bit light for 10.2%.

 

 

 

Poured on tap at Brewery Bhavana. Pours a deep black color with a medium bodied off white colored head that had a little lacing down the glass as it faded. Smells of deep roasted malts, coffee, a bit of brown sugar, and then a big slightly sour aroma to it. The taste was good, deep roasted malts, a bit of coffee, and then a big kind of sour finish to it that was kind of refreshing. Smooth feeling, a lot lighter than it says, tart, interesting take on this style. Overall, pretty good, worth a shot if you like interesting beers.