What’s the Difference? Share your Side-by-Side (2022)

A few years ago when I joined BA, I didn’t know much about beer. As I learned from this wonderful community, I saw folks aging or “cellaring” their beer. I didn’t even know this was a thing. This was mostly occurring with big stouts and barley wines as near I could tell so I started to stow a few in my “cellar”-which is the back of my beer fridge. As I learned more about cellaring, it would seem (for stouts anyways) that the most benefit comes from aging those with adjuncts in hopes that flavors would fade and reveal other flavors hidden by the adjuncts. Can this apply to non-adjunct imperial stouts? I guess we’ll see.

Bells Expedition Stout is easily my favorite straight-up imperial stout. Each bottle was purchased within a few months of bottling date and fridge kept since. Thanks to @ChicagoJ for adding to the cellaring discussion and making me think a bit more with some comments he made recently.

Sorry in advance on the glassware-it’s the only two matching glasses I have.





2018
-Half finger head light brown. Color: pitch black
-Stronger smell, mainly dark chocolate with coffee in the background.
-Taste is muted and muddled. Definitely getting dark chocolate and mild coffee. More coffee on warming.
-Lower carbonation and slightly thinner body. Still drinks incredibly smooth.

2022
-Full finger of head, darker brown. Much better retention and lacing. Color: pitch black
-Barely any aroma at all. Slight coffee and roast. Aroma gets a little stronger on warming with a little dark chocolate appearing but still not as strong as the 2018.
-Stronger tasting. Dried dark fruits (dates and figs maybe?), coffee, dark chocolate and roast/smoke
-More carbonation (not surprising). Incredibly smooth and rich.

Aroma was a surprise. It took a lot of warming for the 2022 to open up but even at room temperature, the 2018 had stronger aroma. The 2022 was a much more flavorful and rich, fuller-bodied beer, especially at room temperature. I wonder if the differences in aroma have anything to do with actual differences in the beer unrelated to aging.

I think the bottom line (for me, IMHO, YMMV and all those other disclaimers…) is, drink ‘em while you got ‘em!



I made it! I still have a 2019 and a 2021 in the “cellar” (2020 never made it here due to covid I guess) but I think those will be stand-alones. Cheers!

Edit to make note of a center-justified beer description in 2018 and a left-justified beer description in 2022. This did not affect the appearance, aroma, taste or feel of the beer. Ha!

 

My favorite local retailer still has 2021 Expedition on the shelf even though Bell's beer finder shows they got 2022. He did the same thing with Bigfoot last year. I talked him into getting me the 2022 from the back by saying I would buy a 6er 2021 (think that side-by-side somewhere in this thread) I got the 2022 Expedition at my "real" local about five minutes from my house.

 

A really fun side-by-side!

More barrel influence on Ambiente, showcasing heavier vanilla & spice. Dark fruit undertones; a bit more tannin and heat on the tail than BA Abraxas Good, but I preferred Batch 1 of this beer. Also preferred BA Abraxas slightly in comparison. It brought a great balance of vanilla, cinnamon, & chili on the nose. Palate a bit sweeter, with subtle chili flavor, with good vanilla and more pronounced chocolate. Better balance, better expression of adjuncts. Always a favorite of mine. Cheers!

 

I forgot about this thread, thank you! @cjgiant

Doing a blind side by side of the 2022 regular Bourbon County Stout versus the 30th anniversary. The latter is pretty clearly an egregious money grab, picking out special barrels just can't justify a 3x markup. I am curious to see how different they are though.



If nothing else, they are definitely distinct from one another. #1 is very dark chocolate forward, it's deeply rich and has some subtle fig and toffee. Booze is strong but not hot, with light oak and vanilla. #2 is a little drier with less of the decadent chocolate, less layers, and more naked heat. The mouthfeel on #1 is a little more full, but both are above average for a BA stout. I prefer #1, and by a decent margin. But I'd be happy to have either one in my glass.

The reveal




Ok, I preferred the special anniversary edition. This year was my first since 2013 going Bourbon County hunting. I'd forgotten how good they are. They do have plenty of stiff competition these days, I doubt I'll be back out again next year. Going to enjoy the hell out of all I got this year though! Keeping a world-class Barrel program going for 3 decades is quite an accomplishment.

 

Absolutely not worth it, not even close. I didn't expect it to be, but my curiosity got the better of me.

 

Got a whale BA barleywine side-by-side coming up in a few weeks. Stay tuned!

 

Good Morning BAs! Have a few ambitious (due to the ABV involved) side by sides planned to close the year, after (sadly) only posting one in this thread comparing the same beer (My favorite annual DW Release - Revolution Ryeway to Heaven) but different vintages (2017 vs. 2021).

https://www.beeradvocate.com/commun...-side-by-side-2022.664160/page-4#post-7519724

Today I compare two different BA Imperial Coffee Stouts brewed and barreled in Chicago, and bottled in 2022. I poured perhaps 6-8 oz into comparable snifters, capped and re-refrigerated both to either enjoy later today or tomorrow.

Goose Island 2022 Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout vs.

Lagunitas 2022 Willettized Coffee Stout



A Tale of the Tape:

Fighting out of the Left Corner:

Goose Island, with Orange & White Trunks. $27.26 (includes tax) 16.9 oz bottled 9/8/22. 13.2% ABV. Base blended with different bourbon barrels, brewed with Intelligentsia Burundi Turihamwe Coffee Beans

Fighting out of the Right Corner:

Lagunitas, with Black and Brown Trunks. $17.77 Four 12 oz bottles, bottled 3/14/22 out of their Chicago Brewery. 13.1% ABV. Coffee Stout aged in Willett Rye Oak Barrels.

We turn our attention to tonight's referee, Judge Mills Lane out of Reno, Nevada.



Appearance: Both pour very similar, though they diverge when the GI leaves no trace whereas the L leaves a tan white ring above the rim and light cover above 1/3 of the base. L also has visible fine carbonation when the glass is swirled, whereas GI has a few bubbles noted but is pretty much flat. Mills Lane scores the Round 10-9 Lagunitas

Aroma: These have now sat for 15 minutes, so they are approaching proper tasting temperatures. I remove each glass from the room for one minute to avoid cross scents. GI has negligible coffee aroma, with the barrel asserting its authority and the base bobbing in and out with fruit, oak and leather. I appreciate a lighter touch with the coffee, but the absence is a surprise.

Strong Willett Rye flexes throughout the aroma portion. Once again, I'm searching for coffee in all the wrong places. Getting a fruity base as well, very similar to GI with the oak the feature and loving it. Rye is a favorite of mine, and enjoy the rye aroma. Mills Lane calls this round a draw 10-10

Taste: Started with the GI and the coffee is front and center, very nice dark roast, with the velvet touch that I noted in my 2 oz sample at FOBAB, the reason I splurged on this one variant. This coffee has cream in the form of the sweet base which really complements the coffee. Still smelling barrel all the way, but even 20 minutes in, it adds a light touch, though grows in assertion over the 5 minutes taking these notes and enjoying. Really, really enjoying this one.

Lag is like WTF, so I walked the GI glass back to the kitchen, and have full attention on Willittized. The primary difference between these two offering are unmistakable. The Lag's taste is consistent with the aroma, meaning coffee is negligible, but still enjoying the rye and base beer, fruit lower than nose, leather and malt higher. This may very well be an unfair fight due to the fact Lagunitas for whatever reason bottled these in March, but sat on them until November, perhaps to find a more appropriate selling season. For a standard BA stout, this may have worked, but with coffee, that decision can be summarized by the acronym FUBAR. The Lag does not have a sweet component, which is usually a plus on my end, but the overall taste is clearly dominated by GI, with a knockdown in the first 30 seconds of this round and a pummeling for the rest of this round. Mills Lane's scorecard reads GI 10 - Lag 8

Mouthfeel: The Lag body is medium to full, light fizzy carbonation adds depth. Can't isolate the impact of the ABV due to the dual tasting, but isolating several sips I'd rate this as drinking at the listed 13.1% ABV. The bourbon continues to emerge, bringing a little heat which the tongue is enjoying.

The GI offering features a full creamy body. Carbonation is negligible. The blend remains consistent overtime, with the mixture of bourbon, barrel and base not morphing into a barrel lead. I am noting a slightly lower coffee taste with the GI, though it could be the result of my tongue being trashed now close to a combined 12 oz into this battle. Overall, Mills Lane scores the round 10-9, GI, likely due to his bias of a fuller body vs. a thinner stout with prickly carbonation.

Overall: As noted in the taste section, while I didn't know the impact of the six month lag between bottling until trying, it is clear as day (or night) the GI has a nice robust coffee flavor which blends well with the base and barrel. The Lag is a fine beer, but I wouldn't label this beer as a coffee stout at this stage. That said, I checked the reply to see my notes on a "fresh" version rated three years ago. The tape replay revealed the following note:

"Strong whiskey aroma and taste. Light malt and coffee noted, but whiskey overwhelms." (Bold emphasis mine)

Bottom line, the Willittized is a fine BA stout, and the rye component really captures my fancy. But if I am looking to enjoy a coffee stout, if given the two options, I am going with Goose Island despite the overwhelming price disparity. GI 10 Lag 9

5 Round Score: GI 49 - Lag 45 - That said, I don't think I'd splurge on another GI bottle due to the pricing, but would enjoy a draft pour or two in a fresh keg.

Bonus Coverage: Blended version

I poured my remaining 3 oz into my remaining 5 ish or so Lag ounces (my initial Lag pour was a few ounces fuller) and swirled around a bit to give this the blended treatment.

I'm getting the malt sweetness exemplified over OG GI, which was shocking. The coffee is AWOL, though that could be my palate. No prickly carbonation, so thumbs up for me. Overall, the blended version is the weakest for me, dulling the separate aspects I enjoyed of each separate offering, and highlighting the features I did not enjoy as much.

Since Lagunitas is basically a standard BA imperial stout at this stage, my next planned side by side for this thread will feature my second bottle of this Lagunitas vintage vs. the GI Base Stout barreled strictly in Willett barrels (out of the 12 oz "Easter Egg" four packs). I predict this will be a fairer more appropriate pairing due to what transpired today.

Sorry for the rambling at this point, but wanted to capture all the differences and nuances between these popular releases.

 

@ChicagoJ thanks for the above side-by-side post, I really enjoyed reading it.

Last week I attended a Goose Island BCBS draft event at a local craft beer bar. I only had a small (5.5 ounce snifter) pour of the coffee version and I really enjoyed drinking that beer. My drinking experience was very similar to what you detailed in your post.

I have not, and will not, buy a bottle of this beer. Just too damn expensive for me.

Cheers!

 

Awesome write-up! When I had fresh willettized back in 2020 I was surprised by how muted the coffee was. Tasted blind I would not have called it a coffee stout. It's a great BA stout at an amazing price, I bought over a case and enjoyed every one of them so far. Maybe I should try a Crushing Mass versus BCBCS sometime soon

 

Thank you so much. Always enjoy reading your reviews and side by sides over the years.

I prefer a 5-8 oz pour for this high of an ABV beer. In the past, I would preview these sample sizes at Fountainhead (RIP - Yet another victim of government shutdowns) on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and determine whether to seek a full allotment or select variants. The pricing of the variants pre-COVID were much more reasonable.

I only purchased Coffee among all variants this year due to the fact it has always been my favorite (both GI and in general). I would buy the Four 12 oz packs in the future as my likely lone BCBS purchases if they return, as I really like the smaller format, and the pricing is about the same at around $40 + tax for 48-50 oz (Three 16.9 oz vs. Four 12 oz bottles). I can also seek out the $5 / 5 oz draft pours at the annual Goose Island Block Party in September, with the added bonus all proceeds go to charity.

Not sure how many are aware, but in Chicago, retail outlets cannot sell a single serving of beer at 16 oz or less, hence the Four 12 oz packs yesterday and today and the 500 ML (16.9 oz) formats for the bottles they sell today. The Coffee and BW were 22 oz bombers before moving into 12 oz four packs pre-infection.

Thank you! I didn't even recall via memory the lack of coffee from prior tastings, but knew I liked it. By revisiting my review, I know can recall way (the rye / barrel, not the coffee).

Drinking more than 16 oz of 13%+ ABV is a bit daunting for me at this stage, but I still hope to conduct my GI Willett Single Barrel BCBS vs. Lagunitas Willettized sometime next week, after recovering from these bottles. Chalking it up to age or perhaps wisdom (likely a mix of both).

Cheers!

 

Permit me to tell you an old story.

'Back in the day' BCBS (and its variants) would be sold in four-packs/12 ounce bottles and in my area for $24.99. I was at my local Wegman's supermarket (they have a beer store inside the supermarket) and I was looking to see if they had any BCBS left (it was the Saturday after Black Friday). At the back of the beer store/section there is a back room where they stock beer that is not on the shelves. There is a door with a small round window and I was peaking in to see if there was some person I could talk to. Luckily the door swings inwards or otherwise I would have got knocked over as two young fellows were exiting. I immediately started talking: "Do you have any Goose Island...." and I saw one fellow had two four-packs in his two hands and I finished "...BCBS beers?". The fellow who had the beer didn't say a word but reluctantly started handing me the 'regular' BCBS but I noticed he had the coffee version in the other hand and I 'replied' I would prefer the coffee version. He had a look of pain on his face but withdrew the regular and handed me the coffee version which I gladly accepted. During this whole 'transaction' the guy didn't say a peep. Were these beers he intended to buy for himself? I don't know but I was a happy camper since I scored for bottles for $24.99 (which I considered to be expensive but what the heck). Those beers were excellent!

The following year (or the next?) they switched to the big bottle format which I viewed as a rip-off and I didn't purchase them. And then they started charging extra high prices for the variants.

Bottom line: Cheers to you for having the financial wherewithal to buy and enjoy BCBCS. It is indeed a very tasty beer.

 

When the beer section was where the Cafe used to be? I may have had to go into that cooler a time or two to grab something I could see through the window and when no one was around to get it for me

 

Yes.

Cheers to you! You are more adventurous than I am.

 

Not ramblings. Entertaining style and enjoyable information. Thanks.

 

Sierra Nevada Narwhal - 2022 vs 2019

This is a beer that I've always enjoyed fresh, often found to sort of fall apart around the 18-24 month window, and discovered that I really enjoyed it again around the 3 year mark. So I figured I'd put my last 2019 bottle up against a fresh one and see what I thought.

Aroma was surprisingly similar, with the older stuff being a bit "softer".

Taste was interesting. The fresh bottle was bold with bitter roasted malts and some sharp coffee and cacao notes. Very bitter in comparison to it's aged companion.

2019 was all figgy and pruney and general dark fruit notes dominating. Sweet and full flavored with the roasted notes very much moved to the background. The mouthfeel is also a bit fuller with some age.

I'm surprised by how much more I enjoyed the older one. I've been thinking of this as a beer that I really liked fresh and that I also enjoyed with 3 years on it. This instance I'd say I really liked it with 3 years and enjoyed it fresh. Makes me think I should be sticking a 6 pack in the cellar each year and saving it for 3.