Hickory Stick Stout - Barrel-Aged
Olde Hickory Brewery

On tap @ the Foothills Brewing Company on 12/12/09 during the Olde Rabbits Foot release. I'm not sure why this as added as the Hickory Stick Stout, when it was clearly listed at the event as a Barrel Aged Imperial Stout. But whatever...

Pours a deep dense black, with a thin covering of dark and burnt mocha head. This stays rich around the edges, with some thin wisps in the center, leaving just a light cascade of foamy lacing behind. The bourbon is strong in the aroma at first, before evening out some via a mix of chocolate, roast, molasses, and vanilla, which gives this a deep smoky tang. There is some woodiness here in the nose but it's not overly tannic smelling. A still waft of heat intensifies and sharpens the flavors but does sting thee ole' nose hairs a little bit.

The taste is sweet chocolate fudge, coffee, and bitter roast. This is crammed into a front and backend that are drenched with sticky bourbon warmth. The finish is smoky and woody feel, with a splash of vanilla sweetness, before heading into a lingering moisture-sucking dryness. The mouthfeel is full bodied, with a HUGE mouth-filling creaminess to it. There is some cola-like nature to this form the bourbon and more of heavy chewy slickness towards the back of the swallow but this stays pretty frothy in the mouth the whole way through. There is some heat present here (towards the back where the chewier flavors dwell) but overall this isn't bad considering the higher feeling ABV and abundance of bourbon flavoring here.

Good stuff here, with that assertive and chewy Stout character really melding nicely with the barrel notes to give this a rich, smoky, and tangy texture that doesn't quit.

On-tap at Foothills in Winston-Salem, NC.

Pours black with a one-finger light brown head. The head recedes into a wispy layer on top leaving decent lacing.

Smells of roasted malts with large amounts of bourbon and vanilla. Also present are good amounts of dark chocolate.

Tastes good. Roasted malt and dark chocolate flavors up front are joined shortly by well-integrated bourbon and vanilla flavors. Midway through the sip hints of molasses enter into things then fade into the background as dark chocolate and roasted malt flavors carry on to a mildly bitter ending. Bourbon and vanilla flavors linger on the palate.

Mouthfeel is good. It's got a smooth thickness with moderate carbonation.

Drinkability is very good. I finished my glass quickly and could easily have another.

Overall I was impressed by this beer and was surprised to see the non-BA version listed as an Irish Dry Stout. The BA version tastes much more robust and American stout-like and it's well worth a shot.

Appearance: Pitch black with a light beige head that leaves a nice amount of lace

Smell: Bourbon and vanilla elements are forward with dark chocolate and molasses in the background

Taste: The opposite of the aroma, as the dark chocolate and molasses elements jump out first, followed, in short order, by a very pronounced bourbon and vanilla character that dominates the profile by mid-palate; after the swallow, the bourbon blast continues with vaniila, chocolate and coffee flavors blending together in the finish

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with moderate carbonation; some warmth in the gullet after the swallow

Drinkability: A little too big and hot to be consumed in any quantity, this is a very flavorful brew which really displays the Pappy barrels to their utmost

On draft at the Foothills Brewery following the Olde Rabbit's Foot release, this was one of the special options available for the event. Having barely heard of Olde Hickory before the announcement of the collaboration, I was interested to try this one.

The color is so dark that I couldn't tell that I was drinking from a branded glass until I drank enough to reveal the black logo on the side. A nice woodsy, bourbon sweetness from the barrel aging comes through right away on the nose. The bourbon character in the flavor is dominant without being overbearing, and additional notes of bitter chocolate and molasses are also apparent beneath the bourbon. It's medium-bodied, but a very fine carbonation makes this one go down so easy that I had to order another. If this beer is representative of the brewery's offerings, then I am saddened by the fact that they don't distribute very much beyond Hickory.

I had this on tap at Foothills today, part of the release of Olde Rabbit's Foot bottles. This was dark brown/black with 2 fingers of tan foam and a strong bourbon nose. Beneath the bourbon I get roasted malts and maybe a little dark chocolate. This description sounds like any of a dozen or more bourbon barrel stouts I've had, maybe I'm getting jaded by this style... Very good bourbon taste, complementary rather than outright domination. The body is a little thinner than expected, I feel a little more viscosity would match the rich full flavors.