North Coast Old Rasputin Anniversary Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout

Brewed by North Coast Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Fort Bragg, California USA

Tap at Blind Tiger: Opaque deep khaki dense head. The aroma has a huge dark fruit richness- lots of rum raisin and vanilla/bourbon character. The chary black malt base comes through a bit. Silky/creamy on the palate. Big booze presence in the flavor and body. Lots of vanilla/raisin/rum qualities with that underlying tarry black malt and roast giving off mocha undertones. A bit too much bourbon for my taste- plus this Imperial Stout in it’s self is fantastic.

500ml bottle from Draegers in San Mateo. turns out I can get this in NJ anyway! black body, dark tan/light brown thick fluffy/rocky head. aroma is dark chocolate, some vanilla, bourbon, a little prune. some oak and molasses too. body has lively carbonation, dry boozy/bourbony malt, chocolate liquer, and oaky flavor, balanced by baking chocolate, roasted malt, and a little bit of piney hops. great blizzard beer!

500ml bottle, XII, from once upon a vine south. pours a slightly oily black witha half-inch dark beige head that quickly disapates leaving a nice ring of lace. aroma is excellent with dark chocolate, fudge, cold coffee, and roasted malt notes backed by big, oakey bourbon, mild vanilla, licroice, and hints of coconut and smoked wood. flavor is wonderful as well and follows the aroma beautifully with sweet chocolate, roast coffee beans, and mild toffee malts up front backed by huge, woody bourbon and vanilla notes with hints of dark fruits and smoke/ash. palate is medium bodied and maybe just a tad thinner than most bourbon barrel impys with a wonderful, oaked bourbon finish. overall, a top notch example of bourbon barrel aging that need not be at such a high price point.

bottle shared with kegbear. Very good malt, vanilla smell. The initial taste is some chocolate with definite vanilla cream coming out in the finish. Incredibly smooth. This is a very solid beer!

Bottle from Dilly Deli. Poured black color with an average creamy creamy brown head that mostly lasted with excellent lacing. Moderate to heavy roasted malt, chocolate, bourbon, woody and small alcohol aroma. Medium to full body with a rich smooth texture and flat carbonation. Medium to heavy roasted sweet chocolate cream flavor with a medium to heavy sweet smooth finish of moderate to long duration. Another standout brew.

Had an Old Rasputin side by side by an Old Rasputin XII.... Head is darker tan than the original, aroma of bourbon is apparent in the XII.... Flavor is strongly alcoholic, with an infusion of bourbon... You should have seen my girlfriends face, she said she would have rather taken a shot of tequila and gotten it over with... I think it is incredibly complex, bourbon, roasted malts, dark chocolate, prunes, and oak... Probably could only have one... Nice

Bottle from ditmier, I think. This is the XII. Pours black as night with typical rasputin head that dissipates. Nose is vanilla, oak, milk chocolate. On taste, it packs a wallop. Tons of rich vanilla and roasty notes, the bourbon certainly comes through, but in a mostly refined way. Pretty hot as well. This is some pretty gnarly stuff and I dig it. Excellent.

Pours almost opaque black with a tannish/brown head. Aroma has the coffee, chocolate qualities common to most RIS, but there is definite wood, bourbon, and vanilla on the nose as well. The flavor is very balanced and smooth for such a big beer. There is a lot going on in the flavor, very complex, cocoa, coffee, vanilla, whiskey, wood, molassas, roasty,a little smoky even. There are some RIS that I prefer oak aging and some that I prefer their regular versions, I must say that I love both the regular Old Rasputin and the bourbon barrel aged. The only knock is how ridiculously expensive it is. Hoppin Frog BORIS and Great Lakes Blackout are both roughly twice as much barrel aged, this was 4 times as much. A great one time try, but the cost will prevent me from purchasing again.