Everyday Bourbon Barrel Stout?

I think you can still develop your palate to prefer other things... much like your girlfriend, who's palate was developed to prefer stouts... I don't think BeerRaiderFan was saying that his palate is sophisticated, so much as changed or altered, specifically because of his love for the big boys with the crazy profiles...

 

oH Ya TenFidy!! yum, have 2 in the frig.

 

I would question the idea that most barreled stouts are sweet vanilla bombs that are even close to a gateway type of beer. Most still retain a considerable amount of ethanol heat and that distinctive "burnt sugar" flavor that most people's love or hate for bourbon seems to hinge on. The mixture of heat and burnt flavors (combined with the general roast/burnt coffee flavors of a traditional stout) are an obstacle to people entering the field, if anything. That and price, of course.

I do agree with the general thrust of the "bourbon has warped people's perceptions of good beer" argument but I don't think it's a fad that is going way. People who drink bourbon (and even people who prefer bourbon to beer) are now a permanent fixture of the American craft scene. We will all continue to see threads like this.

I for one hope to see more typical stouts and even English brown ales released as a fresh/barrel-aged blend. Something like, for example, Tyranena Rocky's Revenge, which is a brown ale partially aged in bourbon barrels. I imagine Goose Island Nut Brown could be 1/4th or 1/3rd aged in bourbon barrels and still be mild enough to be an everyday beer.

Especially if people would get over their irrational fear of recycling barrels. Vanilla flavors come from wood, not whiskey, and you get more of them once there is less whiskey actually in the wood.

 

Jim beam

 

Actually, I think that you are giving too much leeway to the implied idea of stating a developed palate or maybe both you and beerraiderfan have a different understanding of the word developed. By definition, developed implies a sophistication and/or advancement. Developed nations, developed land, developed instinct, etc. Yes, it is a change, which is why I immediately suggested stating it as a changed palate, but to say "developed," definitely implies (whether intentionally or not) a more sophisticated palate.

 

Full Sail "Black Gold" Imperial Stout (Bourbon Barrel Aged) is probably along the lines of what you're looking for. Not as good as BCBS, KBS, etc, but still a pretty good BBS.

 

I love one of the things you said, I wish some breweries would make true Barrel aged beers and Bourbon Barrel aged. I'd love to try a fresh oak barreled stout and see how it compares to a Bourbon barrel aged beer.

 

I don't eat dessert every day, but I do a couple times a week.
Same goes for stouts, and I really like BA ones. Dragon's Milk is my vote.
On subject of other BA beers,
If Bolt Cutter was easily and available year-round, I'd have one every day.
I like a little rye or bourbon every day, too.
Bickering over the idea of this thread seems so silly to me, but trying to convince people not to argue seems even sillier.

 

Epic Big Bad Baptist I believe is the best answer to this question now that it is distributed to Wisco.

 

I didn't like Heresy at all. You're better off just dumping bourbon into your beer if that's what you're stuck with.

 

I like DRAGONS MILK as well

 

also DOMINION is decent

 

I'm to the point I just splash a drop of Buffalo Trace in my FBS. Give a lil' swirl and enjoy.

 

DOUBLE LIKE

 

Barrel aged BORIS

 

I can give you four very good bourbons that will last longer and taste just as good for under $30. You can even add them to your favorite stout if you desire.

 

Everyday ba stout ? Only hoppin frog and Nebraska. Nah. I just stock up on the ltd brews.

 

The definition of bourbon can be a little odd sometimes. For example, it's illegal to call something bourbon if it's not brewed in the US.

So brew something in the US, it's a bourbon. Brew the exact same liquid any other place in the world, it's not bourbon. What is it legally then? "Unpatriotic fermented corn juice"?

I never seem to have trouble finding BA Yeti and Hoppin Frog.

 

I was going to start a thread on this very matter, but I'm not certain that it would contribute much to what has already been said. But since you brought it up...

One of my concerns with barrel aging is that the final product may not elevate the base beer, and if the barrel-aged version doesn't elevate or add to the original, then why do it? And I would charge that Weyerbacher's barrel aged beers are an illustration of that problem. In my opinion, Old Heathen, Blithering Idiot, and Quad are very good examples of the styles they represent. But (again, in my opinion), Heresy, Insanity, and Blasphemy are not as good. Or, at the least, they are not sufficiently "elevated" to make them as worthwhile as the originals.

I just believe that breweries would do well to avoid barrel aging if they are not convinced that they're producing a better or (at the least) worthwhile product that adds to the original. It may hurt their brand in the long run. But, I suppose that I'm not the first to say this.

As for readily available barrel aged stouts, it's gotta be BORIS, perhaps followed by Dragon's Milk. (I haven't tried Anderson Valley's so I cannot comment.)