Great Lakes Barrel-Aged Blackout Stout

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Cleveland, Ohio USA

very deep black color with a terrific cream head. so many flavors with every taste I had to have two immediately. very satisfying when served very cold. thirst quencher!

Bottle from Ughsmash! A nice sunday tasting with J. This was at the peak of the night.... Aroma is top notch, my fav quality in the beer. Sweet oak, vanilla, bourbon, and chocolate malts invade the nose. The flavor, however, had a little something missing or off. A little too cut throat sweet and hot. I have never had the normal blackout - so I can’t say if this a normal quality or brought about by the barrel. It was very nice, but a little short of epic. Would have been better enjoyed in a blizzard for how warming it was....

Shared a bottle of this stuff with my bro jarspag; we were a bit tipsy after a sunday full of tastings, but this stuff delivered. Typical silky pitch black, crude oil appearance with a nice dark tan head. I enjoyed the aroma the most out of all elements in this brew...lots of very rich molasses, oak and warming bourbon and alcohol. The taste is great for this style of beer, however I felt like this stout was missing something, maybe it needed more of a bitter and chocolate nose. This is an epic stout, yes, however the initial sweetness of each sip was a bit much, then fades directly into a heavy bourbon and charred wood finish. Excellent soft and chewy mouthfeel throughout the beer. The alcohol was not as well-hidden as expected. I am still very impressed with this brew, and I highly recommend it to IS lovers.

22 oz. bottle shared with fordest. Pours a thick black with no head. Aroma of bourbon, alcohol, and coffee. Flavors of coffee, vanilla, and bourbon. Alcohol is warming but not that over powering.

Bottled. Black with almost no head. Very nice with notes of coffee, chocolate, alcohol, dark berries and dark fruit.

Sample from 22 ounce bottle (2006 vintage), RBSG Minneapolis Grand Tasting, June 23 2007. Opaque black, thick and opaque, no head at all....faint alcoholic burn in the aroma, bourbon-vanilla characteristics pretty much overpower everything else though some faint coffee hints can be found when it warms a bit....body is pretty bitter, the bourbon mellows things out a bit but there is plenty of heat, both from coffee and strong resinous hops, through to the finsh....too harsh and dry at the end IMO, unbalanced and hard to drink though being a bourbon-lover the aroma grows on me. I like the "regular" version much more; still, thanks to whoever brought this.

Poured black with brown head. Aroma of chocolate, coffee, and alcohol. Flavor was pretty much the same but with some fruit and hop notes. Very nice finish. This was before I spilled half of it on the floor.

Sampled at the RBSG ’07 Grand Tasting. Pours an opaque dark brown brew with a fast dissolving head. I blinked for a second and the head was gone. Could not remember the hue or shade of color. Aroma is very faint with a hint of vanilla, bourbon, and a touch of roasted chocolate malt. Taste is full bodied, light carbonation, very sweet with flavors of pitted fruit, roasted coffee and dark chocolate. Finish is more toward the sweet side than the floral hoppy bitterness as most other imperial stouts. A very good winter sipping stout.