Schlafly Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout

Brewed by Saint Louis Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Maplewood, Missouri USA

75cl bottle. Dark brown with red highlights and a lasting creamy beige head. Quite bourbony in the aroma with plenty of oak and caramel followed by some stouty chocolate notes. The flavor is mostly run by the bourbon, but in a very smooth fashion that incorporates plenty of smooth roast malt sweetness. Creamy, full body, but not thick or quite as full as you might expect. In terms of character, this is 75/25 bourbon barrel to stout, but the alcohol is so well concealed that the bourbon is pretty nice. The stout underneath seems like it would be a little weak without the barrel though. Coming together they make a pretty good package. Good recommendation from the Wine Specialist in DC as this ended up better than the Southern Tier stouts that I was set on getting.

Bottle 2007 from theisti, bottle 2008 from SL. The pours were quite similar, nice choco-colored head (esp. for an aged beer, perhaps they re-carbonated this thing?) over a deep black body. The aroma was chocolate and chocolate, some bourbon. The flavor followed with the 2008 showing more roast and cocoa-notes, the 2007 more milk-chocolatey sweet notes. The 2008 also had some more oak/wood notes in there, slight dryness to the finish. Horizontals like this are what make me think that the whole aging thing is over-hyped, rarely "worth it." A good brew, tasty stuff, erring only possibly on the sweet side of things. Mouthfeel full bodied, slightly sticky.

2007 Edition. Thanks durhambeer for this nice bonus! Pours a dark brown/black color with minimal head and subdued carbonation. Smells of carob, dark fruits and touches of dark chocolate. Taste is actually quite pleasant. Lots of dark berries and molasses with minimal roast and a nice, dark chocolate backbone that mingles with the berries. Slightly fruity all in all. Pleasant vanilla presence. Bourbon character is quite restrained, and the barrels simply add a pleasant vinous quality. Body is slightly think from the barrel aging, but the low carbonation helps to keep this from being a big issue. I prefer a richer, creamier body for this sort of beer, but I am not disappointed either. Drinkability is very good. Recommended. Schlafly is not often my favorite brewery, but this was a nice effort. Give it a try.

Aroma is of light molasses and chocolate syrup and caramel ... Has a medium full head, caramel in colour ... is quite light and mellow for such a boozer .. .taste similar to the aromas, more caramel and chocolate werthers candy .. a nice brew, sweet and mellow... i could polish off a bottle in 15 mins after a funrun ..

Thanks to Goliath for this one I split this 2007 bottle with some friends poured into a pint glass produced a tan head that lasted on top of a black body. Just what a stout should look like. The aromas of bourbon and malts and chocolate stood out to me. The flavors were incredible they of course followed the nose. But by now they melded to this elixir of the god’s type flavor. It went down way to easy and to fast; the mouthfeel was full and thick. This is an incredible stout and with a little more than a year on this bottle. I would say deserving of more attention than it is getting.

Brewed in the USA...... Pours a dark brown color with a thin tan head with nice lacing. Aroma of Bourbon, malts, vanilla and caramel. The taste is super sweet !!!! Bourbon oak, toffee and roasted malts. The mouthfeel is thin, but pleasant, finishes with a slight alcohol warmth. I realized the Bourbon aged brews are not my favorite. However, i will continue to search for some that i will like.

750ml bottle, 2007 vintage, deep dark brown color, with a fluffy tan-colored head, leaving some laces, sweet toasted, roasted, chocolate malt, oaky bourbonish, vanilla nose, with some grated coconut, fruity, burnt raisin, plum notes with a faint mochaish, espresso aroma follows through on full-bodied palate with a sweet oily, rich black chocolatey, roasted malt character, with some brandy liquor chocolatey cup praline, nice oak barrel bourbonish flavors, with some mild toasty, caramel, toffeeish, burnt fruity dried raisin, plum accents, with a hint of mocha, espresso, molasses, leading towards a sweet roasty, chocolatey, fruity, warming bourbon-liquorish finish.

2008 bottle. Black pour, tan head. More clear and lighter than I expected actually. Aroma of slight bourbon up front, followed by a melding of chocolate, coffee, roasted malt, and cherries. Flavors of almond, berries, coffee, dark chocolate, and a slight hop bitterness on the finish. The body is creamy, but lighter than expected. I have a 2007 bottle that I will try in a couple of years.