Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout
Carlyle Brewing Co.

Approaching the establishment, a sign in the door read that the Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout was tapped on Friday, meaning I was just in time to try this on my first visit to Carlyle. It poured into a chalice a deep black color with a small tan head that fell to coat the beer. No light came through, it was really nice looking. The nose was not quite what I expect from a wood aged stout. There was a lot of molasses and fig character with a slight hint of vanilla. I was expecting chocolate, coffee and more vanilla. The flavor was similar to the nose. Somewhat subdued, not big and bold as I expected. Slightly roasty and a little figgy with puffs of alcohol making their way into the flavor. I like it, but its just not as big and bold as I would like. The feel was thick, but not THICK. It didn't leave that coating in my mouth after swallowing the beer as I want in my big stouts. Overall, I enjoyed this brew. Drinkability was nice, as I had no problem taking down 10.5 ounces of the beer in no time at all.

I'm not sure about the price. It came out to be more expensive per ounce than Dark Lord, but not at all in the same league. I would probably have it again, but not after taking their normal menu and making a session of all of them.

Also, call me anal if you want, but I talked with the brewer and he told me that the beer was aged in Jack Daniels barrels. JD is not bourbon, so the name is not really appropriate. I would like to see this beer after it is aged in true bourbon barrels, as I like bourbon a lot more than Jack.