Hoppin Frog Barrel Aged BORIS The Crusher

Brewed by Hoppin Frog
Style: Imperial Stout
Akron, Ohio USA

Dark brown pour beneath a dark tan head. Scents of caramel and chocolate all with alcohol interlaced. Smooth and velvety. A slight alcohol burn follows the mellowed out flavor of camp fire smoked malts and melted chocolate. Nice lacing on the glass. Finish combo of a bitter hop finish and alcohol leaves an awkward feel in the mouth. Warms up nicely but the alcohol continues to somewhat overwhelm this thick full bodied beer.

22oz bottle, via miketd. Pours a pitch black body with a small fizzy dark brown head that quickly receded to a thin ring. The nose is a great balance of Imperial Stout and whiskey. Heavy roasted malt and charred oak combine wonderfully, lots of vanilla and whiskey, some noticeable but not overdone alcohol. I’m getting a lot of chocolate as well. The whiskey and vanilla grabs me first with the Stout backing them up really well. There’s a ton of whiskey flavor here yet it doesn’t seem overly boozy or brash at all like many of these beers seem to be. Not too much in the way of hops, but they do come out a bit on the finish with more vanilla, char, and burnt malt. This is just incredibly smooth and drinkable for such a big beer, especially a whiskey barrel aged beer. Mouthfeel is smooth and full with a nice slightly oily texture and perfect soft pinpoint carbonation. Don’t know that it’s really an improvement over the regular version, as I thought that that’s a really good beer as well, but it certainly didn’t make it worse.

[Bottle] shared by tytoanderso. Pours deep, clear brown with basically no head. Aroma is eggy batter, light bourbon, and some greasy hamburger notes which were quite bizarre. Flavor is very roasty, bordering on burnt, almost no barrel influence, but there is a touch of coconut and vanilla. Mouthfeel is really thinned out compared to the non-BA version. Big let-down.

Aroma is lots of oak and some whiskey, coffee/roast, and a bit of ash. Taste is slightly salty, mellow oak, some sweet chocolate, oak, whiskey, and coffee. Very subdued, well balanced. Finish is slightly bitter, coffee, sweet. Yummy, but very subdued. Well balanced and blended. Oak, nice whiskey, and just a well made impy under it, but at the same time it was not mindblowing. Still, great.

750ml bottle. Thick, boozy aroma. Lightly charred malt. Heavily toasted vanilla bean. Maybe a bit of soy and molasses. Slightly ashy with an odd note of smoked Ancho pepper. Whiskey barrel asserts itself after the beer warms up. Chocolate drizzled malted milk balls. Pours a thick, oily black with virtually no head. Oily legs on the side of my glass. Flavor is incredibly boozy for only 9.4%. Lots of charred barrel. Heavy vanilla extract presence. A bit of salt and soy. Black liquorice and anise. Medium to full bodied. Slightly greasy texture. The finish is sharply stinging. This just seems like a thinned out and overly boozed version of the regular BORIS. Good, but far from spectacular BA Imperial. Really nothing here that stands out from others. Thanks Craig!

Very dark with a thin ring of tan head. Only thing I can get out of the aroma is a slight burnt note. Flavour is ok, initially. It feels a bit thinned out without much flavour. I get a burnt finish that lingers. I dont think the barrel aging added anything. Too bad, the regular version is pretty awesome.

Bomber shared with my brother and nephew. Inky black, motor oil pour with a substantial, rocky brown head and excellent sticky lace. The huge espresso and dark chocolate aromas of the regular Boris are there, with the addition of an unmistakable and bourbon and vanilla character, but not much "oakiness" to speak of. Thick, chewy, oily mouthfeel with very gentle carbonation and a pleasing warmth. Very little bitterness, just enough to balance all the malty goodness that lingers on the palate. I suppose it’s all a matter of personal preference as to whether this is better than the standard Boris, but I sure liked it.

Been able to sample this a few times on different occasions, and each time I’ve been impressed. Malty aroma with lots of chocolate and dark roasted malt. A hint of vanilla and whiskey are mixed in. Similar to the regular version. Dark brown pour, little head that vanishes and some decent lacing, I like the look of the original much better as it retains a large head and lacing. Mouth feel is completely different with this release. The barrel aging created a light fluffiness, almost a nitro stout effect. It’s exceptionally creamy and smooth, still hearty but not nearly as robust as the standard. So unexpected and so nice, it really makes this version stand apart. Flavor is great lots of nutty, woody accents followed by rich chocolate, coffee and toast. I’m amazed at the differences in this version, I’m glad it stands apart from regular BORIS, although overall I prefer the thicker more robust qualities of the other.