Bourbon Barrel Aged Madrugada Obscura
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales


- From:
- Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
- Michigan, United States
- Style:
- Wild Ale
Ranked #786 - ABV:
- 10.5%
- Score:
- 84
Ranked #30,943 - Avg:
- 3.63 | pDev: 22.31%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 8
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Nov 15, 2024
- Added:
- May 05, 2019
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 1
Push past the limits of sense and sensibilities, from the known into the unknown. Fall way off the map, and here there be monsters.
This Belgian inspired bourbon barrel aged stout, dark as a moonless night, brimming of roasted malt and bitter hops, will keep you good company in all places, be they of light or of dark.
This Belgian inspired bourbon barrel aged stout, dark as a moonless night, brimming of roasted malt and bitter hops, will keep you good company in all places, be they of light or of dark.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by cambabeer from New York
4.46/5 rDev +22.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.46/5 rDev +22.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Had this one tucked in the back of the fridge for a good few years now. Bottled 10/03/2018.
Black body, cappuccino brown head with decent lacing and fluffiness. Nose is sour hay, wet leather, tobacco, bourbon, oak, vanilla. Taste is sour but also much more roasted bitterness than I was expecting. Some tobacco, chocolate, pumpernickel, wood, tart.
Ends on the sour note, but then what lingers is the chocolate toasted malt bitterness. Medium full bodied.
This was better than expectations.
Nov 15, 2024Black body, cappuccino brown head with decent lacing and fluffiness. Nose is sour hay, wet leather, tobacco, bourbon, oak, vanilla. Taste is sour but also much more roasted bitterness than I was expecting. Some tobacco, chocolate, pumpernickel, wood, tart.
Ends on the sour note, but then what lingers is the chocolate toasted malt bitterness. Medium full bodied.
This was better than expectations.
Reviewed by damndirtyape from Ohio
3.61/5 rDev -0.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.61/5 rDev -0.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12.7 oz bottle, served in a snifter glass. Date on the back of the bottle 10/03/2018 BL1801.
Appearance: Black and letting no light through, slow pour leaving sediment behind. Light tan ring of foam, with some persistent thick strands of lacing.
Smell: Bourbon, sour barrel wood, a bit of a vinegary note.
Taste: There is a hint of a stout in here (roasted malt with some sweetness), and then it gets washed away by tart sour notes at the start and finish. Some bourbon woody/vanilla notes, but buried under the tart sour aspect of the beer.
Mouthfeel: Slick, good thickness, but mouth-puckering and a bit astringent with a dry and powdery finish.
Overall / Drinkability: Nope. I don't like soured beers, and I'm not digging this one. I can see what was attempted, and I wonder if the age of the bottle is the issue, or maybe it's just the whole wild ale aspect that has overwhelmed the Belgian stout. I couldn't finish it - just too sour for me.
Jan 07, 2023Appearance: Black and letting no light through, slow pour leaving sediment behind. Light tan ring of foam, with some persistent thick strands of lacing.
Smell: Bourbon, sour barrel wood, a bit of a vinegary note.
Taste: There is a hint of a stout in here (roasted malt with some sweetness), and then it gets washed away by tart sour notes at the start and finish. Some bourbon woody/vanilla notes, but buried under the tart sour aspect of the beer.
Mouthfeel: Slick, good thickness, but mouth-puckering and a bit astringent with a dry and powdery finish.
Overall / Drinkability: Nope. I don't like soured beers, and I'm not digging this one. I can see what was attempted, and I wonder if the age of the bottle is the issue, or maybe it's just the whole wild ale aspect that has overwhelmed the Belgian stout. I couldn't finish it - just too sour for me.
Reviewed by HoppingMadMonk from New Jersey
3.89/5 rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.89/5 rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Solid black appearance with a lasting thick dark tan head.
Medium light carbonation with about a medium body. There is a bit of a slick oily feel.
Aroma is light amount of bourbon, plum,sour funk.
Taste is interesting, pleasant yet at times it doesn't all come together.
Really interesting and worth trying
Nov 18, 2022Medium light carbonation with about a medium body. There is a bit of a slick oily feel.
Aroma is light amount of bourbon, plum,sour funk.
Taste is interesting, pleasant yet at times it doesn't all come together.
Really interesting and worth trying
Reviewed by JCB1711 from Alaska
3.89/5 rDev +7.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
3.89/5 rDev +7.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
Thin mouthfeel. Didn't taste too much of the bourbon barrel. A dark sour is about all I got out of this. Perfectly drinkable, just not really what I was expecting.
Jan 01, 2021Reviewed by Scotchboy from Idaho
3.51/5 rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.51/5 rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
On tap in Nampa ID; served in a snifter.
A: Dark and nearly jet black; opaque; khaki head and decent lacing.
S: Funky lemony tartness meets the nose, which is confusing; slight underlying roasty character doesn’t play well with the tartness in my opinion.
T: Lacto/lemon sourness, maybe grapefruit tartness? Ghostly creamy/smooth dark ale character underlying that with impressions of bourbon and vanilla, chocolate and roast.
MF: Body is cut down by the sour ale, confusing dryness and tartness.
O: I DO like SOME sour porters, but this one doesn’t work in my opinion; not my cup-o-tea.
Aug 24, 2020A: Dark and nearly jet black; opaque; khaki head and decent lacing.
S: Funky lemony tartness meets the nose, which is confusing; slight underlying roasty character doesn’t play well with the tartness in my opinion.
T: Lacto/lemon sourness, maybe grapefruit tartness? Ghostly creamy/smooth dark ale character underlying that with impressions of bourbon and vanilla, chocolate and roast.
MF: Body is cut down by the sour ale, confusing dryness and tartness.
O: I DO like SOME sour porters, but this one doesn’t work in my opinion; not my cup-o-tea.
Reviewed by StonedTrippin from Colorado
4.17/5 rDev +14.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
4.17/5 rDev +14.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
a special version of a special beer. my buddy remarked when i was bragging about drinking this that he missed dark sours, and i really agree, this is a style that kind of had its moment and then seemed to disappear pretty quickly, even as the general popularity of sour beer continues to be on the rise, this little niche has been left behind somehow, a real shame. this was already among the best of the best, and the bourbon barrel treatment takes it to new heights. this seems a little thicker than i remember, although its been awhile. inky near black, close to still from the tap, a few patchy areas swirling but nothing lasting, long legs, highly viscous. the aroma is quite alcoholic, also some permanent marker intensity, lots of wood, red wine fruitiness and tannins, and some sweetness and vanilla from the bourbon, although not as whiskey forward as anticipated. the flavor is crazy complex, super old tasting too, and the bourbon is but one of many flavors, licorice root, black pepper, light smoke, even anise, and lots of acidity, almost a flanders red sort of fruity vinegar vibe. smooth to drink though still somehow, a ton of body, acid and oak and booze all through it, warms up well. a neat treatment for an already unique beer, i will always have the utmost love and respect for jolly pumpkin, never a dull moment with them!
Aug 15, 2020Reviewed by metter98 from New York
3.98/5 rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.98/5 rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A: The beer is just about jet black in color. It poured with a quarter finger high light tan head that left a large patch of bubbles on the surface and a wide collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Moderate aromas of sourness and dark malts are present in the nose along with notes of oaky vanilla.
T: The taste follows the smell and is somewhat sour with flavors of dark malts and notes of oaky vanilla from the bourbon barrel aging.
M: It feels a bit shy of being medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: I found this beer to be rather unique as it combined sourness with bourbon barrel aging.
Serving type: bottle
Dec 06, 2019S: Moderate aromas of sourness and dark malts are present in the nose along with notes of oaky vanilla.
T: The taste follows the smell and is somewhat sour with flavors of dark malts and notes of oaky vanilla from the bourbon barrel aging.
M: It feels a bit shy of being medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: I found this beer to be rather unique as it combined sourness with bourbon barrel aging.
Serving type: bottle
Reviewed by buschbeer from Ohio
4.02/5 rDev +10.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.02/5 rDev +10.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
375 ML bottle
Served in a Jolly Pumpkin snifter
This beer pours black and is topped with an inch of tan head that leaves some nice lacing. It looks like a stout when decanted.
It definitely smells sour. As it warms a little I begin to get some cocoa and coffee aromas. I also get green apple along with some pear. As it approaches room temperature I start to get some oak.
The taste begins tart and builds towards sour through the middle. I get some funk. I get hints of dark chocolate and coffee in the aftertaste. There is some oak.
Medium bodied with a dry mouthfeel
This is a nice sour. The barrel aging added some oaky notes and seems to dry it out a little more.
Aug 24, 2019Served in a Jolly Pumpkin snifter
This beer pours black and is topped with an inch of tan head that leaves some nice lacing. It looks like a stout when decanted.
It definitely smells sour. As it warms a little I begin to get some cocoa and coffee aromas. I also get green apple along with some pear. As it approaches room temperature I start to get some oak.
The taste begins tart and builds towards sour through the middle. I get some funk. I get hints of dark chocolate and coffee in the aftertaste. There is some oak.
Medium bodied with a dry mouthfeel
This is a nice sour. The barrel aging added some oaky notes and seems to dry it out a little more.
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