I am staying home and not braving the crowds of drunken bros drinking green swill this St Patrick’s Day. I wanted something dark and stormy to go with the weather tonight. I remembered the Bluegrass Brewing Company Bourbon Barrel Stout I had in the fridge. Perfect. It’s one of the standard issues that BBC puts out, and it’s a standard in my beer arsenal, and if it’s not one of yours, it should be.
Pours as dark as the night tonight (between the lightning, that is) with a nice tan head that dissipated like that last roll of thunder. (Okay, I’ll stop with the lame metaphors.) I gave it an aggressive pour to release all the yumminess (that’s a beer reviewer term, right?)
The nose has a very strong vanilla essence, with a hint of bourbon and oak, but not as much bourbon as you would expect.
The taste matches the aroma with a splash of bourbon and large vanilla finish that lingers nicely on the tongue. The mouthfeel is medium, not watery, with little carbonation. There not much alcohol burn at all from the 8.6% alcohol. Smooth.
Overall, I’d prefer a bit more bourbon flavor to come through. It’s a stout I always come back too, even though it’s not one of my favorite styles. I like the vanilla taste a lot and it’s a good local beer. Go get yourself a 4-pack and judge for yourself. It’s some good drinkin’ and it’s brown.
