Central Waters Brewers Reserve Bourbon Barrel Cherry Stout

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

12oz, no date. Deep brown with a 1/2 finger tan head, fading to a thick film. Aroma has some tart cherries, oak and vanilla, a good amount of butterscotch and milk chocolate. There are also some hazelnuts. The roasted malts aren’t as dominant as I’d imagine with an imperial stout. Flavor is fruity, woody, and acidic from both of the aforementioned flavors. The roast is thankfully more prominant, though still not the biggest flavor. Medium body with light to moderate carbonation, though it is slightly thinner than I’d have liked. Never got sweet, never got bitter, either--more woody and fruity acidic if anything. Dry finish. A good amount of toffee is there. This is pretty much the Bourbon Barrel Stout with cherries added--go figure. I honestly don’t really pick up on anything else other than the cherries, though I like the original bourbon barrel more.

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.

Bottle courtesy of grimreeser. Aroma of oak, chocolate, and cherry. Medium bodied but with more of a porter like texture. Flavor of roasted malt, vanilla, and tart cherries. Just a very slight hint of bourbon, joined by more cherries on the finish.

Pours a dark brown with an off-white head. Smells of cherries. Very sweet with aromas of caramel, malts, oak, bourbon, alcohol and a bit of cherries. Full bodied with a nice sticky mouthfeel. Long sweet finish with a mellow warming alcohol sensation. Very nice.

Bottle. Not quite black, more a very dark ruby. Head fades quickly. Nose is cherries & bourbon, alcohol, maybe some toffee but its really buried. Flavor is bourbon, cherries, vanilla, toffee. The cherries add a twang which plays well with a woody aspect. The bourbon overwhelms the base beer’s characteristics - I have a hard time detecting much of anything from the Imperial Stout.

Pours brown with a tan head. Nose is chocolate cherries and a whole lot of bourbon. There’s some oak and stuff, but the bourbon dominates. Flavor is nice. Chocolate cherries with some nice heat. Light body with a dry finish. Not bad at all.

’08 bottling, red label. Smells like a chocolate-covered cherry with roast malt in the background. Very smooth and elegant flavor - Chocolate, cherry, and a touch of oak; in the finish some bourbon comes through but it’s accompanied by complimentary cherry sweetness as to not overpower anything. The finish is also balanced by some acidic roast but not a lot. Overall this is a very good cherry stout - clean alcohols and no one overpowering flavor. This apparently is a new release (as of late Feb ’08), and appears to be an improvement!

Bottle. First rating in a number of months and the 100th rating for this brew. Knowing this is a cherry flavored beer, I can clearly make out the cherry in the nose. Would make a nice winter seasonal. Fully opaque body. Not much head or lace. Cherry beer lovers will like this one. A lot of strength, a discernable cherry tartness and a semi-sweet chocolatety aspect. Well done. Warming. A very good beer that requires some palate adjustment up front.