Full Sail Top Sail Imperial Porter Bourbon Barrel Aged

Sampled @ ogglethorp’s. Pours very dark black. Nose is intimidatingly strong of bourbon with vanilla undertones. Good thing I am not afraid of bourbon. Very full of booze with tastes of oak and dry fruit. Warm finish that could keep your innards toasty in the dead of winter.

Bomber from Sparky27 and ucusty - thanks, guys! I’d been wanting to try this for some time, and I confess to being somewhat disappointed. The pour is fairly nice, and - like other FS beers I’ve had - is a trace thin. Modest head, minimal retention, and a fairly light palate, which seems inappropriate for the style. The nose is certainly sweet and bourbon-y, a heavy vanilla and oak presence that’s definitely there in the taste as well. While there’s some complexity in the barrel-aged portion of the brew, I get almost no sense of what the actual porter is like. The barrel dominates, not allowing even the roasted malts to come through very much, and the result is too slick and sweet. Maybe some aging will do this good.

Pours opaque black with mahogany edging. A tan head rose up to almost an inch and fell quickly, leaving a few streaks and dots of lacework. A blast of bourbon leads off the nose, with charred espresso, dark chocolate, and more fusels following through. Slightly acrid and shades of a Kahlua reduction. A hint of sawn oak winks as the nose finishes. Thickish and chewy mouthfeel. Drying and a bit grainy, with a charred bite. Bitter, dark chocolate, deeply roasted coffee beans, and boozy bourbon descend on the pallet. The oak really starts coming through midway, and drying tannis build in tandem with boozy heat as it finishes. An exceedingly lenghty finish with bitter, acrid chocolate, charred oak, and more bourbon. The corners are a bit sharp on this young one, and definately is a bigger brethren to the ’04 sampled previously. Bury this one for a few years, and you won’t be dissapointed.. ....---2004 vs 2008 side by side-- Right off the bat, the 2008 pours more viscous, but with a slightly more substantial head. The 2004 not only has the red wine vineousity in the nose, but there are some apparent sherry. The 2008 is much fuller, fudgey, and richer, with a smidge of vanilla. The body on the 2004 is a bit thinner and smoother, and the 2008 more robust and chewy. The bourbon is much more abundant and hot in the 2008, as is the chocolate, espresso, and oak. Bottom line, the 2004 is leaps more complex and integrated. If you’re looking for the most bourbon, oak, and fudge, then the fresh one’s the way to go.

Bomber shared by footbalm. Pours a deep black with hints of red, and with a medium beige head. The aroma is almost totally bourbon. The flavor is also up front and in your face bourbon. A really noticeable alcohol presence. You give it awhile and there is also some roasted malt, some vanilla, and some smoke. A really nice beer, give it some time and it will be great.

bottle from hopdog. Like black gold bourbon light. Mild vegetable flavor distracts. Good, but not great. Mild notes of bourbon. Needs more malt background.

Pours black and thick with a dark coffee head, laces well on the glass as you drink, very pretty to look at. Nose is sweet with lots of bourbon/whiskey notes up front and hops and malts in the background. Taste is dominated by bourbon notes and oak, but comes across a bit thin for me, lacking a strong roast/coffee/chocolate base. finish is slow and yummy. very good but would be better with a stronger roast/dark ester base.

Black pour with an espresso head. Strong oak and chocolate aroma. Flavor was Chocolate, oak, vanilla, molasses, toffee, coffee, slight ash. Finishes rather smooth, nice mouth on this one.

very dark brown color with ruby at the edges it’s topped by a khaki head that lasts as a ring of foam. initial aroma of brownies or chocolate bread followed by vanilla, savory oak, prunes, port wine, wet grass, earth, slate and the perfect amount of sweet bourbon. the bourbon is soft and incredibly well integrated into the flavor without over powering everything else... super chocolatey notes are followed by vanilla, oak, dark grains and bourbon spiciness. nice ashy finish and bitter cocoa aftertaste. light to medium bodied with a disappointingly watery mouth feel. you’d think with the ABV% and barrel age that it would be richer?... but the consistency does make it incredibly easy to drink