Stone Bourbon Barrel 12th Anniversary Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Escondido, California USA

Draft at Brouwer’s Back in Black ’09. Bourbon dominates the aroma with maple and caramel slightly hidden and a touch of chocolate. Pours jet black with a dark tan head. Bourbon is slightly overpowering, but there are nice chocolate undertones to balance. A very rich full-bodied bear with some great roasted malts. Slightly bitter finish for balance. Great beer, but the Russian Imperial is better in my opinion.

Draft at Brouwer’s. Jet black. Loose caramelly burnt-tan ring. Big bourbon and maply nose. That combination gives it a sourness that’s almost salty. Big, thick, creamy body. Roasty, tons of char, some maple syrup, burnt toast, and sharp dark-roasted coffee beans, along with a bit of bourbon and vanilla. Nice, but still young and raw.

Loved this one. Went to Brouwer’s stout night with this as my first choice, as I love bourbon aged stouts. Great looking, near black with a tan creamy head that leaves lots of lacing. Aroma is malty, caramel, toasted vanilla, and a slight cherry--no soap whatsoever. The bourbon and caramel balanced very well together, creating a very smooth taste, sweet but with a slight bitter finish to round it out.

On tap at Brouwer’s "Back in Black" stout night 09. This one was remarkably similar to the Stone Boubron Barrel RIS - with so much sweetness and flavor added by the bourbon barrels, the naturally sweeter 12th Anniversary ale doesn’t have such a distinct flavor. Pours black, with a smallish mocha head. Tons of bourbon and oak in the nose and the flavor, with perhaps a bit more chocolate in this one. The sweetness is a bit more earthy. Not quite as hot as the RIS, either - the slightly lower abv serves this one well. Really good, and at the end of the day, I think I might like this one a bit better.

Somewhat soapy bourbon aroma to me that nobody else at the table got so not sure. Did resemble the normal 12th a lot with just more bourbon notes and a smoother palate.

On tap at Ashley’s. Opaque black-brown with a minimal brown head. Nose is bourbon, dark chocolate, and roasty malt, with alcohol and a bit of a vinous character. Flavor had a lot of bourbon in it, with all the oaky, vanilla goodness that goes with it. Underneath that was dark chocolate, coffee, and alcohol. Nicely balanced mild sweetness and good bitterness. Very smooth, thick mouthfeel.

Strangely enough I found this more balanced than the original, the sweetness of the bourbon went a long way towards balancing the almost astringent character of the original.

In short: A roasted chocolaty stout with a touch of vanilla and a touch of bourbon
How: Tap at Boston Extreme Beer Fest 2009
The look: Black body topped by a large tan head
In long: Roasted malts, black chocolate and a touch of vanilla. I’ve had many bottles of the regular 12th Anniversary Bitter Chocolate so I basically only took comparative notes. Compared to the regular batch this Bourbon Barrel batch felt a little less roasted, there was an added vanilla touch, the body felt smoother, it was a little less bitter and of course there was a notes of bourbon (although not much). I don’t think it spent a lot of time in the bourbon barrels because this was not a major change over the original 12th Anniversary. It’s hard to say which of the regular 12th Anniversary or the bourbon barrel I preferred but it is even harder to say bendroflumethiazide.