Great Lakes Barrel-Aged Blackout Stout

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

pitch black pour with an orange head. cork, whiskey and fudge strike me first in the aroma. the flavor is complimentary with cherry and whiskey that mixes with the perfect roasted chocolate flavor. i may be going out on a limb, but this is the best beer ever. smooth strawberry flavor. rootbeer float notes. oh damn, i see the heavens, nirvana, and all that. vanilla perfection. the regular blackout is so rich only the barrel can get through it, and it does. it hurt me to finish this because i knew i would likely never taste it again.

22oz bottle #322 of 400. I was at the brewpub last night and wanted to try this on tap but after trying the pumpkin ale and the oatmeal stout I didn’t think it was wise to try this one too before driving onto Sandusky, so I picked up the bottled version. Pours Black as coal and thick like a milkshake. A nice mocha brown head graces it first then fades back to a film that laces on the way down the glass. Aroma is big of bourbon. Some notes of vanilla and oak can also be found and a bit of chocolate sneaks through as well. Flavor is a great blend of bourbon, oak, chocolate, coffee and vanilla. Palate is smooth and chewy. Amazingly drinkable for a beer this large. The barrels did this beer some justice for sure and I’m glad I got the chance to try it! Great Lakes never fails to impress! Rerate - Got the chance to try this on draught at the release party in 07 and I’ve got to bump this one up to a 5.. The head is better on draught and even more of the chocolate flavor comes through. It is even smoother and creamier than I remembered it. I think this is what I want to drink in heaven but well if it is all out I’ll have BA Dark Lord..

This is an amazing stout. Very gorgeous appearance, color, head, etc. With a thick palate covering body. and alot of aroma and flavor. Hints of Jim Beam, berries, malt, and vanilla in the aroma and flavor. A very complex taste, for a very complex beer.

I love it, i can’t say enough good about this beer. Coffee, chocolate, deliciousness... you name it. its all there. incredible.

Got this for my birthday from a friend in ohio. i loved the original and this is a great oak aged beer. i have not found too many oak aged beers i really liked but this aged fine CHEERS

2005 bomber courtesy of OhioDad via Duane. Enjoyed on the evening of Edward’s (brooklynboy) surprise tasting alongside 25 other highly rated stouts. Sampled after Central Waters Bourbon Barrel and immediately before Goose Island’s Bourbon County. Bottle #7 of 400. Onto the beer: This epitomizes all that a barrel aged stout should be, an exemplar of this style. Perhaps the most vicous and lucious beer I have ever sampled. So thick and rich with vanilla extract, prune, chocolate truffles, and an amazing finish. An intense and sensous experience.

Thanks Phil (Philip). #7/400 vintage 2005. This beer offers the nose a fragrance that is scented with heavy bourbon notes, molasses, anise, and hops. It is a black solution with thick colored caramel head. This heavy beer is both sweet and rich. It is creamy beer that has the flavors of molasses, coffee, toffee, and malt as its signature. It has a smooth finish to it that leaves a nice taste infused with all the above flavors lingering.

Sampled at RBSG 2006- Grand Tasting. Bottle #397/400. The blackest beer that I have ever seen. this beer has such density that it draws other beers into it and they are never seen again. This beer is not just roasted, it is though the malt is Joan of Arc herself. The aroma is precious of carmalized sugars and pyrrolized glucose. There’s such a thick mouthfeel here- amazing. This beer pounds your tongue and takes your esophagus hostage. Residually, during the afterglow, I am awash with a suggestion of licorice. Wow, I need a cigarette.