Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Chicago, Illinois USA

This is just an incredible, incredible beer. I was able to share this with my brother and he too was blown away at how tasty this was. It pours out this glooping, thick, motor oil like appearance with a brown one finger head. Aroma is chocolate, vanilla, black licorice, black walnuts, wood, and alcohol. Mouthfeel is sticky, coating and velvety smooth. Flavors were much of the same as the aroma, with a sweet malt really coming out along with the wood and bourbon notes. Just an awesome beer.

After trying for quite some time to acquire this beauty, I finally managed to get 2 4-packs from my mom for the holidays. If this is worth half the hype it will be worth it. 2006 bottle. Pours as black as I’ve ever seen with barely any head. Temperature starting out around 50F. Aroma is a masterful mix of oak, vanilla, butter & thick cream, alcohol, with some chocolate & coffee. Taste is a thick mixture of chocolate, cream, wood, vanilla, and several others that I can’t even distinguish yet. This is an amazingly thick & tasty roller coaster ride of a beer! My only complaint is that its a "tad" hot, but that is to be expected since its only a few months old. I’m excited to try this one as it ages! 1/23/2008: Cracked open another 2006 bottle - man has it mellowed nicely! 2/10/2008: Couldn’t help myself - had to try one of my 2007 bottles. Wow - this is intense. I definitely prefer an older bottle that has cooled off a bit, but this one is still packed with intense aroma and taste. Bourbon-woodiness is very prominent and quite tasty. Wonderful as always.

Thanks so much Phil for hooking me up with this one, much appreciated. Opaque black pour with a thin ring of mocha head. Initial blast of dark chocolate and an assault of vanilla with burnt wood and dark rum, all fill the nose. Very heavy on the vanilla in flavour, robust coffee chocolate, with burnt toast notes. But the booze comes through, and almost puts up a blockade. I mean, this is tough to even sip. Finish is almost all booze, with a little dark rum and chocolate. Perhaps a little too one dimensional. This is very good, just not exceptional. Really glad I got to try it though, thanks P-dog!

(Bottle, thanks Ughsmash) Pours totally black. Roasted dark malt, vinous aroma with a lot of oak wood, bourbon and vanilla. Dark chocolate and cherries also present. Some dark dried fruits and Madeira like tones with raisins, blue grapes and prunes up front. Smaller notes of dark bread. Dark roasted malt flavour with strong notes of Madeira, oak wood/bourbon, salt liquorice and dark chocolate. Oily, thick long lasting mouthfeel. Fiery, peppery alcohol warmth on the aftertaste with notes of dark malt, dark fruits and bourbon. Deep and complex overall. The wine-ish tones is almost a bit port like both in the aroma and flavour. Medium bitter with a dryish sting. Full body. Helt stört bra!

Bottle, big thanks to Muenster for sharing this beauty. The pour is very black with no real head other than a dark tan ring on the top. Lacing on the goblet is thick. I’m slightly let down by the aroma. My expectations for this are very high and the nose seems a little one dimensional. It smells good indeed, but it’s little more than sweet bourbon with a touch of coffee behind it. I’ve sampled a few other bourbon-aged brews with a comperable nose. Now, the mouth is where this gem really shines. The flavor is absolutely savory. More espresso, brownies, smoke, and dense, black chocolate come out and intertwine with the sweet vanilla, oak, bourbon notes. The viscous liquid is coating and the whole delivery just sticks to my mouth and lingers for minutes on a savory note of coffee ice cream, bourbon, and a nice cigar. This is a gigantic beer with tremendous depth and balance. [Nov 22, 2007]=-------&# 2006 bottle sent my way by the generosity of Iowaherkeye. I was so blown away by this one that I had to get another bottle. The pour is darker than I remember. It’s almost ebony with a small dark tan head. Lacing is dense on the snifter. The aroma is quite rich with deeper complexity than I recall. Yes, the bourbon is laid on thick, but many subtle nuances one finds in a good glass of southern whisky are imparted here: vanilla, smoke, charred oak, all with a chocolaty and roasty background. The mouthfeel is pretty dense and highlights the savory sweet flavors of brownies, vanilla, soft smoke, and coffee. The alcohol warms up my nostrils a bit while I sip this beast. Y’know, this is a very, very good beer. It’s not as complex or refined as I recall and the bourbon character is much stronger, perhaps the 3 year old bottle I first sampled actually benefited from the age. This is a pretty straightforward "barrel aged imperial stout," but it is done so well. While no surprises are found here, this is quite solid. My score reflects the 2006 bottle.

Courtesy of Pailhead. Dark oily black with huge beige head. Coats the entire glass. Aroma is very sweet, lots oc chocolate malt, vanilla, bourbon, a little alcohol. Initial flavor is blended vanilla and cocoa, turns to bourbon and a little coffee in the finish. Big warming alcohol presence in the finish. Hard to believe this is only 11% with the big alcohol presence.

Bottle courtesy of Gillard. Pours a dark black color with thin yellow tan head. Aroma is strongly of malt and whiskey, some roasted notes, ripe dark fruit, hints of coffee. Flavor is roasted and toasted malt with strong bourbon notes, dark chocolate, wood, toffee and coffee. Full body with an alcohol and malt finish. This beer will be even better after it matures in a few years.

Bottle courtesy of drewbeerme. Pours a thick opaque black with almost zero head or carbonation, and the head it does have fades fast. Nose is coffee, chocolate, oak and bouron. Palate is dark chocolate, molasses, vanilla, roasted malt and a touch of smokey, oaky bourbon hidden in there as well (more like Scotch). Alcohol is pretty well hidden but it does have an extreme warming effect. Definitely a cold weather sipper – great brew.