Barrel Aged Knock Out Imperial Stout Imperial Stout
23rd Street Brewery

 

 

 

 

A bottle left over after GABF judging and given to me as a reward for my volunteer efforts. Pours a finger of dark brown head over a pitch liquid. Smells like an aged stout. Chocolate, toffee, plum, fig, raw oak, lightly of vanilla and coffee, and clean alcohol.

Tastes mostly of barrel. Some oak waxiness and mild vanilla. Malt is mostly chocolate. Where are the hops in a style known for heavy hopping? Perhaps reduced due to aging in barrels, but I would have expected some to pull through. The barrel, dark grains, and alcohol combine to create a slightly sour astringency that doesn't work well in this beer. Thin beer with moderate carbonation. This beer comes across as empty with a surly barrel character kicking in for no good reason.