Full Sail Black Gold Imperial Stout - Bourbon Barrel Aged

A hearty brew that is black as night with a strong roasted malt character and a full body. After its initial release in January 2010, our Imperial Stout was aged for a full year in Bourbon casks from Kentucky. This extended aging presents hints vanilla and oak. This, combined with the robust character of the Imperial Stout make for a smooth, wonderful taste experience. A hearty cellar beer. Very Limited Availability - 22oz Bottles and Draught. Black Gold was named one of "the best" barrel aged beers in the US by Men’s Journal and took home a silver medal at the 2006 Great American Beer Festival® in the Wood and Barrel Aged Strong beer category).

3.9

587 reviews

Hood River, United States

Community reviews

4.0 650ml bottle from Belmont Station Brewmaster Reserve 2014, batch 034 - Pours pitch black with a small head. Aroma of roasty malts, wood, oak, vanilla, toffee, syrup and buttery bourbon. Taste is smooth, sweetish and roasty with loads of bourbon, vanilla, oak, wood, toffee and butter. Finish is sweetish, buttery and bourbony with some vanilla, toffee, syrup and roastiness. Quite buttery but pretty balanced bourbon BA IS.

3.8 65 cl bottle @ home as ”Full Sail Imperial Stout Bourbon Barrel Aged”, no gold paper on top. ”brewmaster reserve 2014, 034”, ”Brewed in December 2012” Aroma has cocoa, biscuits and mild vanilla tones. Also wood. Flavour has woody tones, bourbon, cocoa and buttery tones. In the scale of bourbon imperial stouts this is nothing special, but rather enjoyable still.

3.9 650ml bomber from Liquor Max cellar aged 2 months. Had during the Wedding Weekend, in the wedding night tasting. Shared by all. Very dark brown pour. Nose is chocolate and light vanilla. Taste is chocolate and caramel, with light vanilla. Some raisin. Medium to full bodied with alcohol. Finishes quite sweet, with some choco-bitterness. Not as vanilla-y as hoped. Solid. 14.7

3.7 Brewmaster Reserve 2013. 9.6% by vol. Belle robe noire et mousse agréablement brune. Car, quelque fois, le brun peut être moche. Une dentelle est aussi installée sur la paroi de mon verre. Le nez est bien dosé en bourbon. J’imagine que les deux années de garde y sont pour quelque chose. Je peux aussi y sentir du caramel, des guimauves, du bois brûlé, de la terre, du cuir et du cacao. Au goût, le bourbon transpire la noix de coco et les malts noirs semblent être moins bien définis. En bouche, le liquide est possédé par un corps moyen avec un pétillement modéré à bas et une texture crémeuse. La finale sèche montre des notes de bourbon boisé et de barrique brûlée. Bon jus sans sucre et sans flafla.

4.1 2009 bottle from Moscow Wine Co. Aroma: bourbon, dark chocolate/dark cocoa powder, molasses, vanilla, coffee. Palate: medium body, rich and smooth. Flavor: bourbon, underlying acidic tartness, dark chocolate, tart dried fig, coffee. Comment: smooth, quite dry. Love it when the baby fat has thinned out. Aged well. Has developed an interesting sour note. Suggest drinking the 09 now.

3.8 Bottle, 2011 vintage. Pours inky black, small brown head, decent lacing. Aroma is heavy on bourbon, vanilla, chocolate. Flavor is medium plus sweet, light bitter, lots of bourbon, chocolate, roasty malts, vanilla. Lightish body and a bit watery, which takes away from an otherwise nice beer.

3.9 Bottle thanks to northernbrews. Notes from 6 months ago. Aroma is mostly bourbon, some dark chocolate and caramel too. Tastes smooth. Lots of bourbon, good chocolate, some tobacco, some dark fruit. Great mouthfeel. Very nice.

4.1 22 oz bottle shared with Spencer. 2013 bottling. The pour is a cola brown that rolls into black in quantity in the glass. There is a thin ring of dark khaki head and no lace. Looks great. The aroma is big on bourbon. Damn. There is a great roasted malt and chocolate to accompany a strong vanilla light booziness on the back end. The flavor is very bourbon forward with a roasty malt and heavy chocolate with a nice oakiness and a strong vanilla. Bourbon comes through nicely on the back end. The mouth feel is light with a soft carbonation and a bourbon-y short lived oakiness on the far back

3.7 Black pour from 22oz bottle. Small tan head. Heavy whiskey flavor. But good. Cocoa and malty. Rich bourbon flavor. Pretty good

3.5 Pour is dark cola - looks thin but nice and dark. Aroma is big time bourbon but not much of the base beer. Taste is plenty of bourbon, toastiness, coconut, vanilla. Maybe too prevalent on the bourbon! Overall nice stuff, but very reliant on the barrel to carry the beer.

4.3 On tap at Albertsons. Pours out inky black with a huge fluffy beige head, instant barrel/wood aroma, hints of chocolate and rum. Taste is incredibly smooth, no hint of the high ABV. Warmth comes on much later in the game. Incredible RIS, barrel aging is a huge plus.

3.5 The aroma is boozie with the bourbon barrel up front with molasses burnt malt, coffee, and chocolate. The appearance is dark brown with an appropriate head. The taste is like the aroma. The palate was slightly thin for the style. Overall a very solid Impy stout.

3.9 1 pint bottle as ’Full Sail Imperial Stout Bourbon Barrel Aged Brewmaster Reserve 2013’, 9.6%. Shared at Bruce’s. Pitch black, decent foamy brown head. Aroma is vanilla, coconut, molasses. Body is medium, foamy, low carbonation. Taste has more tangy coconut and vanilla, coffee, some booze, dry finish with light bitterness. Very good.

3.8 Bottle shared in London - big thanks to Daniel. Pours black-brown with a creamy beige head. The aroma has dark malts, cocoa, dark fruits, burnt marshmallows. Medium sweet flavor with with toasted coconut, chocolate, some dark fruits. Medium bodied with active, creamy carbonation. Finishes fairly sweet with more chocolate, some toasty bread, earth, dark fruits. Good stuff.

3.6 Bottle thanks to Dan. It pours dark brown with a small tan head. The nose is earth, toasty, sweet, juicy, roasty malty action, vanilla, nougat and cocoa. The taste is bitter-sweet, roasted malt, booze, earth, leather, mild acidity, dirt, coffee and mild sweet fruits with a dry finish. Full body and average carbonation. Well rounded and pretty drinkable stuff. Solid imperial stout action.

3.9 Pours black with khaki head. Bourbon, oak, roasted malt and chocolate aroma. Chocolate, coffee, oak, vanilla, bourbon, caramel and bourbon flavors. Full body and moderate carbonation. Chocolate, roasted malt and bourbon finish.

3.9 Bomber (10.5%) from Trader Joe’s. 2015 bottle. Pitch black on the pour. Smooth and silky looking. Very strong bourbon nose. Some actual alcohol as well. Strong bourbon up front, followed by some sweet roastiness and burnt coffee. Some wood notes and a bit of vanilla. More booze and chocolate. Finish is touch boozy, but lots of bourbon in this brew. Glad I splurged a bit on this.

4.0 Draft pour at Mammoth Seattle. Black pour thin head that stays wile drinking. Strong bourbon aroma, kindof Sweet coco bourbon taste.

4.0 Poured from bomber into a pint glass Appearance – The beer pours a nearly pitch black color with a one finger head of tan colored foam. The head of the beer has a light level of retention, with it residing into the thick base of the beer and leaving a little bit of streaky lace on the sides of the glass. Smell- The smell is quite massive of a whisky and roasted malt smell with a good secondary showing of some coffee and chocolate. Sweet notes of dark fruit and vanilla as well as some caramel mingle with the dark and boozy smells of the brew as well. With some hints of charred wood and a little bit of a smokiness, a rich and dark boozy smell is produced overall. Taste – The taste begins with a rather strong roasted malt flavor with a decent sum of a dark fruits of cherry and fig right from the start. Along with these flavors so to comes some tastes of coffee and chocolate with the chocolate being sweetened by the fruit as well as some vanilla and caramel. As the taste moves on the chocolate becomes more potent while the fruit and caramel fade giving way to a little bit of molasses. All the while, a whisky flavor, which starts out relatively mild, grows stronger and stronger in flavor, becoming rather potent at the end. With a bit of wood hitting stronger at the finish, one is left with a quite boozy and rich sweet, dark taste to linger on the tongue. Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is thick and rich with a carbonation level that is rather low. For the rich dark, sweet, and boozy flavors of the brew the feel is very well done, coating the entire mouth in all the rich tastes. Overall – A pretty nice and sweeter stout overall. Lots of chocolate and sweet mixed with a decent sum of roast and a rather big boozy taste. While not my favorite Imperial stout, it is not overall too shabby overall.

3.4 2013 bottle purchased in CO? my notes compared to others means maybe try after one year of aging... nice complex aroma - vanilla, wood, bourbon, chocolate - best quality. palate was thin for a stout. Taste was ok just something in this beer I couldn’t quite place - it was good but there was too much ??licorice vanilla?? something sweet in the middle of a sip.

4.1 2011 bottle. Black with a creamy light chocolate head. Aroma is chocolate, bourbon, brown sugar, raisin, dates, molasses. Medium-full bodied, slightly oily mouthfeel, nicely balanced on the palate with a lightly sweet and slightly boozy finish. Taste is chocolate, bourbon, dates, raisins, fig. Yum

3.7 22 oz bottle shared with drsordr. Pours dark brown to black in color with a small khaki colored head. The aroma and flavor have roasted malt, chocolat, ccaramel, integrated bourbon and vanilla note, oak, mild bitterness to the finish, the barrel works pretty well with the base beer. Maybe shows some age.

3.7 Bottle shared by alexsdad06 pours opaque black with thin tan head. Nose light bourbon, toffee, earthy, hint of vanilla. Taste light roast, some dark fruit, then nicely balancing barrel. Smooth mouth feel. Finish mix of roast, Bourbon, and light bitter.

4.6 2014 edition. Poured from a bomber into a goblet on 05.24.14. A: Midnight black with some red at the bottom. Fizzy tan ring at the top. S: Vanilla, bourbon, chocolate, woodiness. It smells balanced. T: Vanilla, bourbon, and fig dominate. Woodiness and roastiness are subtle. M: Creamy. A little light and bubbly in the mouth compared to other BBA stouts. O: This is a well put together BBA stout. It is milder in flavor than others, but the balance is perfect. This is in my rotation and it’s always consistent. EDIT FOR REREVIEW: 2015 edition. 04.16.15. T: Lots of fudge/chocolate pie, peanuts, vanilla, bourbon and dark berry dominate. Fig, woodiness, and roastiness are subtle. O: The fudge flavor is great this year.

3.6 Nice dark full bodied imperial stout with a strong taste of bourbon and some coffee underlying the rich stout. Fantastic brew. Perfect for those cold winter nights by the fire.

3.9 2006 batch - brewed February, 2005. Purchased in 2007. No big occasion, opened just to brighten up a grey, rainy day near Seattle - what the heck! The beer is mellowed out, but still bourbon-boozey. Black Gold is a sweet and satisfying malty stout with a preponderance of bourbon character.

2.1 Didn’t care for this one very much. Tasted boozy slightly sweet after taste. There really wasn’t anything that stood out about this particular stout thay would make me recommend this to anyone. Earlier Rating: 12/6/2014 Total Score: 2.8 Once the bottle is opened the boozy aroma is noticed. Oil like appearance when poured. Head dissipates quickly leaving lacing around the rim. Slight chocolate and bourbon taste with a hint of coconut flavor. Very boozy taste, easy to drink. It is worth a shot to try, but there are better examples of a bourbon stout out there.

3.7 2013 brewmaster reserve. Poured pitch black with a short lived dark brown head that dissipated to a tenacious slick sheen. The aroma is pungent and offers the odd combination of sauteed mushrooms, vanilla, and raw honey. The mouthfeel is a bit better, rich but not thick. The taste has a mild bourbon flavor among slight coffee notes and more honey. Overall a very balanced, however unremarkable stout.

3.6 Draft. Nose is a huge booze nose. Dark black pour medium brown head. Taste is mostly booze. Very tropical and fruity with the booze. Like a BA foreign stoot. Good

3.7 Dark-chocolate color with ruby glints at edges. Light-brown, yellowish head. Aroma is dark-roast coffee, bark, bourbon, vanilla, some BBQ sauce. Medium body with moderate but distinct and coarse carbonation. Saturated, dry feel. Flavor is dark, burnt toast, some dark woody coffee, slightly medicinal (in a sappy, Earthy way). Vanilla/bourbon is more subdued here. Herbal hops. A roasty, affordable bourbon-barrel stout, not over-the-top with the bourbon, but slight medicinal notes are a detractor.