DuClaw Oak Barrel Aged Black Jack Stout

Formerly brewed at DuClaw Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Abingdon, Maryland USA

RBSG07. From bottle. Pours dark brown with a chocolate brown head slight different from the non aged version. Aroma is roasted malt, chocolate notes instead of coffee. Flavour is chocolate and raisins. Finish is raisin sweet, blending nicely in with the chocolate.

Date: July 02, 2006
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party
Appearance: black, thin fine brown head
Aroma: roasted aroma with a good deal of sweet chocolate
Body: very creamy body
Flavor: nice sweet bourbon flavor mixed with the chocolate, hint of alcohol

Date: July 14, 2006
Mode: Draft
Source: Tasting
Appearance: black, small bubbly brown head
Aroma: sweet oaky aroma with just a hint of bourbon
Body: big body
Flavor: big sweet vanilla and burbon flavor, touch of roasted way in the background, some fruity character tries to break through
Overall: a year or so would do it justice

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 8/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 15/20
Rating: 3.7/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

(RBSG06, cask) Brown-black body with small brown head. Aroma is moderately sweet, rich, bourbon, chocolate, vanilla. Taste is moderately sweet, bourbon, chocolate, light alcohol burn. Creamy medium-full body.

(Bottle) Pours a black body with a small brown head. Aroma of chocolate, roastiness, oak, and vanilla. Flavor of cocoa, roasted malt, and bourbon.

Bottle... This beer rocks!... Pitch black ale with a mid-sized, creamy, light brown head. The aroma is of rich chocolate, oak and a macadamia-pistacio blend... with a swirl of vanilla. The flavor is well-bittered and well-burnt, but the oak has blunted the Black Jack’s sharp contrasts and added a modest layer of silky bourbon. Pillow-soft carbonation. Finishes chocolatey and smooth. Grassy at the wee end. Thanks go out to Jim for the bottle. Excellent job with this one. Truly world class! One of my very favorite Imperial Stouts!

Bottle thanks to hopscotch sampled on 7/2/06: Pours a viscous completely opaque with a nicely-lacing frothy dark tan head. Big complex sweet dark malty aroma has lots of good dark fruits, plums and a smooth bourbony oaky balance. Body starts with a nice sweet thick caramel maltiness and full complex and very well balanced bourbon oaky character. Finishes smooth and sweet with a good dark fruity character and liquid dark chocolate hiding the alcohol very well.

Sampled on cask at RFD’s as part of RBSG 06: Pours an opaque viscous black with a thin ring of large tan bubbles. Aroma of sweet dark caramel and complex oaky bourbon. Full, complex, sweet dark malty and dark mocha chocolate flavor has some warming notes, but is well-balanced. I prefer the bottled version over the cask, but both are quite tasty.

I feel like I’m left out on this one. I gave it time and thought about it longer than I usually do, but I just couldn’t find what was so great about this beer. Very dark appearance, viscous and resiny as it clings to the side of the glass. Aroma: a bit mild, some scotch or liquor. First taste is light smoke, low carbonation, with a moderately thick body. Flavors of plum scotch and brandy and amaretto. Slick, thick and bold, like liquid smoke. Good stuff but not my thing, and I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s the sweetness in the finish, or maybe I’ve lost my taste for oak aged beers altogethor. Consists of lactic sourness and dry ashy wood in the finish.

RBSG 06 DC @ RFD’s Special Tasting Black, no head and light lacing. Nose of bourbon, sweet with light roast, typical oak, vanilla, kaluah, grape, lightly vinous. The flavor is creamy, a touch sweet and lots of deep demented melanoidins. The finish is reminiscentof a fine whisky mixed with some rich muscovado sugar. Nice dessert beer, not too much bourbon though.