Central Waters Brewers Reserve Bourbon Barrel Cherry Stout

Brewed by Central Waters Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Amherst, Wisconsin USA

Courtesy hopscotch. Pours a dark brown, with a deep reddish hue. Small white head hugs the edges ofthe glass. Smells of bourbon, masked by fruity cherries. That combination always gets me the aroma of peanut butter. The taste actually I think is more fruity than the bourbon. I was surprised by this, I thought the bourbon would drown out the fruit. Sweet flavor left on the tongue and palate. Pretty rich mouthfeel. Not bad.

Quickly dissipating tan head. Very dark chestnut brown body with some soft red and violet hues. The nose lets soft cherry flesh hints escape immediately, followed by bourbon, charred wood, vanilla extract, very light roast and hints of chocolate malt. The combination of the blended aforementioned results in a near-sickening sweetness, luckliy it doesn’t reach that point. I really feel that if this were a more focused aroma, it would be awful. As it is, it has strengths that are squashed by a medicinal blend of fruit and wood-aged dark roast/beer notes. The flavor introduces cherry pastry notes that underscore the roasted malts and produce heavier sweetness. Not cloying, but almost too sweet for an imperial stout without a sustained malty base, for my liking. With warmth the cherry flavors develop lovely tartness and begin to seem real and satisfying. Milk chocolate notes blend with barrel notes to move the sweet train right along. Light spice builds with each sip. Bitterness is almost nonexistent. Finishes chocolatey with lingering cherry sweetness. The palate is moderately carbonated, medium to medium-full bodied, uninspired and forgettable.

12oz bottle. pours black with tan head. nose of cherries and chocolate. flavor of sour cherries, and milk chocolate, some roast. i think this stout just gets overwhelmed by the cherries.

7/10/07 12 oz bottle sampled thanks to drewbeerme. This is it the closer for a day of drinking. What an excellent beer to end on. Pours a thick black with a beige head. Nose is cherry, lightly sour, bourbon, chocolate, oak, vanilla. The nose is loud like the flavor. Chocolate roasted flavors are compiled with bourbon, vanilla, oak, cherry, a lightly tart sourness that seems a bit syruppy (like fake cherry syrup) as I go on. A good beer, but it was much better before it ever met those troublesome cherries. The tangy sourness of the cherries don’t balance well with the bourbon and sweet chocolate flavors. A good beer though none theless. Thanks andrew ... now if I can only sleep in a stinky tent with all of this alcohol in my system. 8/4//7/3/15 =3.7

10/5/08. Pours a dark black with a beige head that fades to a creamy ring that laces down the glass. Nose is rich of cherries, chocolate, oak, bourbon. Tart cherries in the flavor fight for dominance with chocolate, bourbon, oak. Slight alcohol warmth, but all around a tasty beer. Sometimes cherries don’t work well, but the richness in the flavors blend nicely with the butter rich bourbon. 8/4/7/4/15 = 3.8

Bottle thanks to Brigadier! Poured a lovely shade of black with a creamy, well-retained cap of caramel head. I’m with Jon.. this aroma rocked!.. tangy cherry skins align beautifully with grainy oak, bourbon sugars, and vanilla.. sweet and seductive with hints of power beneath.. very nice usage of the fruit and the barrel. The flavor had a well-roasted dark chocolate base with tart cherry skin accents.. the barrel usage was soft and well-executed with bourbon sugars, grainy wood, and vanilla, but no overt booziness or bourbon dominance... drier roasted chocolate and mild tartness on the finish. Grainy and a hair heavier than medium-bodied on the palate.. tangy cherries get a bit tangled up with the wood grain around the edges.. felt good, but not great. Overall a very enjoyable brew!

12oz bottle via trade, I believe with Ughamash but I’m not quite sure. If not from Jason thank you mystery man. Pours Black with a 1 finger tan head. pretty nice look. Killer nose, chocolate, cherry, rich malts and a hint of bourbon. The taste is really intriguing cherry is at the forefront completely, the malts and stoutness are on the back end. This is a crazy fruit stout, like NG Unplugged Cherry Stout but different. Its a good beer any way its sliced though.

Dark color. Smell of malt, cherries, chocoalte, vanilia, sour berries, caramel and some bourbon, but very light. Taste of sour/tart cherries, chocolate, hops, malt, spices(cinamon, nutmeg, pepper), vanilia, oak, and bourbon. Very carbonated but good. Nothing like a Dark Lord but comming from a small brewery, its fine as hell!

Date: 4/28/2007
Event: DarkLord Day 2007
Location: Three Floyds Brewing Co. Parking Lot
Serving: 12 oz bottles shared by nflmvp. Thank you so much!

Tasting Notes
Aroma: Sour and tart cherry.
Appearance: Murky dark brown.
Flavor: Cherries at first, then it moves to roasted malt with some chocolate and oak flavors.
Palate: Medium body, smooth.
Overall: The cherries work well in this beer and add to the aroma and flavor nicely. However, maybe they should make either Bourbon Barrel Stout or Cherry Stout, but not necessarily Bourbon Barrel Cherry Stout. I think the sour qualities of the cherries kind of overpower and maybe work against the sweetness of the bourbon...