Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Tried this at the suggestion of a friend, as I’m normally a stout fan and formerly smoked cigars and pipes. Though I’m not normally one to shy away from high-octane hooch, in this case I was completely overwhelmed and underimpressed. Goose Island really went over the top with this brew - the bourbon and oak completely drowns any chance at subtlety, and the in-your-face attitude of the beer ensures that most folks won’t want to drink a whole bottle, much less the rest of the four-pack. Sipping brings notes of dark chocolate and pleasantly rotting fruit, along with the cask-y flavor of the bourbon. If you’re curious about trying this, first imagine a half-smoked, extinguished, cold cigar dipped in Knob Creek and then squeezed into a glass.

Rate beer describes this as an Iperial Stout. If that’s the case, I’ve just found the first example of the most popular style among beer snobs that I can actually drink. And at $5.91a 12 oz bottle, I wont worry about drinking this often but I would most definitley try this again (occasionally) with a cuban cigar. It’s unfortunate that something ’Bourbon County" (which is in the region where true Bourbon is made, Central Kentucky) is actually brewed in Illinois, but they know how to do it. Mollasas-thick and strong as the bourbon it resembles, this beer should only be sampled at the proper temp and with a well-lubricated taster to appreciate its qualites. Exceptional beer.

courtesy of Laurent Mousson - very dark brown colour, little dark beige foam; complex aroma of wood, nut and molasses; thick and oily, full-bodied and hugely bitter, a touch of acidity; solid carbonation; long bitter roasted and nutty finish leaving warming alcohol notes - spectacular!

Perfect Impy Stout. Aroma is wood, leather and coffee. Pours black with almost no head. Nose is bourbon and a slight bit of molasses. Flavor is an INCREDIBLY smooth taste - with notes of raisins, currants, leather, tannins and just a little coffee. Finish is a nice woody note that begs for more. Sipping this beer is as close to heaven as you can get.

been looking for this bad boy for a while. Got a single at Whole Foods in Louisville for 5 and change. 12 oz. bottle (bottled 07/03/06) into a sniffer. First thing first, this god damn thing is a twist off! What are you thinking Goose Island? it even has a trace amount of crust around the twister grove (hopefully it isn’t ruined). Aroma: strong cloud of dark chocolate, coffee, vanilla, caramel, and only a faint hint of bourbon. Pours one of the thicker oil black impy stout pours I have seen. It was so thick that when trying to pour it from extreme heights to stir up a head, nothing came because it was so soft and dense, and merely absorbed the falling liquid like a trampoline. (4 on appearance b/c I like a big dark head on my impys). Flavor - holy shit! Tons of everything good from chocolate, vanilla, smoke, currants, molasses, bourbon, and port. The alcohol bites pretty hard, but in a very bourbonesque way that warms the stomach very well - I love it. The thickest and most coating brew to have ever touched my palate - drinking this is like eating a 4 course meal. Overall - this thing is fucking phenomenal and I must rush to get the last one that was on the self at whole foods to age even further. With more age to soften the flavor and aroma this will be a 4.9 (I’ll still deduct 1 for the lack of head). Sorry this rating got so fucking long.

2007 12oz bottle. Poured solid black with almost no head. Aroma is sweet with vanilla/caramel and strong alcohol. Up front, flavor is as expected from aroma: big time bourbon with pronounced vanilla and caramel. After initial bourbon onslaught, the more subtle chocolate, coffee and roasted malt flavors are revealed, accompanied by a mild alcohol warmth... the high ABV is surprisingly well masked. Mouthfeel is viscous and oily. Quite excellent... I’ll definitely have to figure out how to get a few more bottles of this...

12oz bottle pours a oily, thick, opaque, deathly black with a thin brown head that disappears immediately. Aroma is incredibly boozy, whiskey, bourbon, vanilla, oak, tobacco leaves, molasses and moist earth. Big time flavor of vanilla, butterscotch, oak, molasses, caramel syrup, coffee, kahlua and wood. I expected the flavor to be too much, and actually there was more fruit than I anticipated (cherries, plums, raspberries). Thick on the tongue, creamy in the throat with a heavy alcohol feel and burn in the throat. The aroma might scare you off, but the flavors are very complex.

Re-rate 9/30/08. Draft at Clybourn. Poured an opaque black color with a brown head. Smelled of distinct bourbon, vanilla, raisin, date, prune, chocolate, and toffee. Full bodied, sweet, oily, and slick. Carbonation was on the low end of the spectrum. I tasted roasty malt, chocolate, vanilla, toffee, caramel, and bourbon. A bit over-bourbonated, but it works well for this beer. 12oz bottle from iowaherkeye. Thanks Joey. Bottled 7/3/06. Served at cellar temperature. Poured an opaque black color. Head was thick and brown with good retention. A bit of sad looking lace was left behind. Aroma was of bourbon, milk chocolate, soy sauce, and molasses. Sweet, full bodied, and boozy with a warming alcohol effect. Tasted of vanilla, whiskey, chocolate liqueur, and a few dashes of soy sauce. Boozy, boozy, boozy, but pretty good. 8/3/8/4-17