Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout
Brindle Haus Brewing Company

This is batch 2, which was aged in Iron Smoke barrels for 12 months.

This one pours a dark and rich-looking black, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like roasted malt, smoke, vanilla, dark chocolate, roasty coffee, tobacco, char, and caramel.

This is definitely a bit thin, and Iron Smoke barrels usually impart a harsh whiskey character. Despite that, the base stout is complex enough to somewhat bury the subpar whiskey character, and draw out some of the vanilla, tobacco, and char from the oak itself. There's dark chocolate and caramel as well, with a roasty coffee character that's very inviting.

As the beer warms up, it gets creamier, but it also gets a bit more harshly boozy, as the whiskey itself starts to come out more strongly. It's still a fairly drinkable pour for the strength of the ABV.

This is a fairly impressive big stout from two of the definitely better local spots to me. I want to see more of this, and less of the usual dreck we get from our local breweries.

Many thanks to Knapp85 for this can.

A - Dark brown and almost black color on the pour, creamy caramel colored lacing ring.

S - Roasted cocoa with light toasted caramel and a shot of creme.

T - Moderate bourbon presence up front before any of the flavors hit. After that, followed with roasted chocolate, light char, oak, and finishes with some cherry cocoa cream that lingers for a long time. There is some warming on the way but is more prominent on the first few sips.

M - Thick, silky, and viscous. A little sugary on the lips which makes it sticky.

O - Enjoyed this one but the bourbon presence is a little "unrefined" and a tad harsh. Aside from that, nice and flavorful.