Goose Island Imperial Brown Goose

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Chicago, Illinois USA

on tap at GI - Clybourn, served in a stemmed tulip snifter. reminded me a lot of the Bourbon County Stout. notes of bourbon, vanilla, oak and roasted malt. even my lite bber drinking friends admitted this was a smooth and well balanced beer. after drinking a pint of Midway IPA then sipping on an Imperial Brown Goose, all the while looking across the parking lot at Sam’s, ( knowing they had saved some beers for me at customer service ) I knew I was indeed in a special place. this had wonderful flavors of dark pitted fruit with the previously mentioned bourbon and vanilla. just damn fine beer. get there if you can!

Beautiful deep brown in color with a creamy, tall tan head as it sits in the tulip glass. Smells wondrously robust: Milky Way candy bars, pecans, caramel, toffee, chocolate, anise and pepper. Superbly creamy, complex and rich. We’ve seen comparable flavor rushes from this brewery before, and it reaffirms that Goose Island really knows how to churn out big beers. This amplified Goose is a malt monster, putting on a clinic for only $6 a lesson. Other flavors manifest along the way, with rich nutty characteristics such as caramelized pecans, rich milk chocolate and toasted walnuts stirring around the palate in symphonic bliss. Hops give it even more oomph. Slight hint of the 9% ABV, but it’s more of an afterthought. Spicy pecan pie with chocolate rippled icing bring it home and linger for a while. Rich, rich, rich. This beer is utterly fantastic.

On tap at the brewpub. This is a fairly unique beer, almost like a Belgian dubble in my view. Dark brown, strong and assertive. Alcohol content is definitely noticeable. Malt dominates, but there are enough hops to balance. A very interesting and tasty brew.

I ordered this by the name only, expecting to receive a brown ale similar to Hex Nut... I didn’t even pay attention to the "Imperial" in the name. This was a killer, heavy beer, close to a sweet or imperial stout (Aaaaaaarrrgghhh! I have to drive, dammit!!!!) Beautiful presentation... a deep, black-body impressively filling out the curves of the tulip glass, with a filmy, mocha head. Big alcohol presence in the nose with dry, burnt malts & dark chocolate. Big & sweet in flavor with chocolate and burnt coffee in the finish. Syrupy, flat and utterly delicious.

<font size=-4>On tap at <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Island Beer Company (Clybourn), Chicago, IL<font size=-1>

Tap. This was one of the most interesting beers I’ve had in a while. Look was like porter, very dark brown with thin offwhite head. Smell is similar to a baltic porter, which is where I’d place this. Roasty scent, backed by fleshy fruits, delicious apples, and chocolate. Taste is similar, starting VERY fruity and ending very roasty, with coffee and chocolate coming through. Just the right amount of sweetness and bitterness. Clean finish, thick and creamy mouthfeel.

On tap at the brewpub: Pow! The power of this beer hits the nose right away ... rich and black, this is roasty and malted, with a powerful punch.

Tap at Clybourne: A deep reddish brown hue with a small frothy head which produced very good lacing on a MBA glass. The aroma has notes of plum and currant, mocha, hazelnut, vanilla, grassy hops, light pepper, and earthy yeast esters. The taste starts with a nice fruity character with an equal balance of a malty backbone. Finished with a smooth and sublime bitter note and a touch of chocolate. Even a bit woody even though this is not the bourbon-barreled version. Challenged the palate for sure, I dig it for sure. The feel is a bit oily with some bite on the back of the palate, the only notice of the ABV I could detect, well hidden all told. This is a wonderful brew and something Will Turner can be proud of. Sublime complexity shows as it warmed up and in the end is one of the best GI beers to date. Enjoy it while it lasts which isn’t much longer. (now I know why Willies Small Beer is so good for a second running of this beer as well)

Tap at Clybourn. Deep brown, thick lightly tanned creamy head. As this warmed, really nice tones of toasty chocolate, brown sugar, dark fruit, and light citrus emanate from the tulip glass. The flavor was outstanding, well balanced, and matched the aroma. It came off very toasty, some roastiness, chocolaty, maybe raisin as the dark fruit of choice, brown sugar, and light citrus in the end. Medium to full bodied, pillow soft carbonation, toasty finish. You Chi-town guys need to get down to GI before this is gone. Absolutely loved it!