Goose Island Bourbon County Stout - Rare 2015
Brewer’s Notes
Back in 1979 the folks at Heaven Hill Distilleries filled a handful of new freshly charred American white oak barrels with some of their finest whiskey. It is rare for Bourbon to age in barrels for more than twenty-three years. But these barrels patiently sat for over thirty years. The extra years developed a distinct and complex character that makes them truly one-of-a kind. We filled those barrels with Bourbon County Brand Stout, and then stored them away in our Chicago Barrel House to age for two more years. With these rare barrels from our friends at Heaven Hill we believe this is one of the finest beers we have ever produced. This is Goose Island Rare Bourbon County Brand Stout for 2015.
Recipe Information
Style: Imperial Stout Aged in Bourbon Barrels
Alcohol by Volume: 14.5%
International Bitterness Units: 60
Color: Midnight
Hops: Willamette
Malts: 2-Row, Munich, Chocolate, Caramel, Roast Barley, Debittered Black
Back in 1979 the folks at Heaven Hill Distilleries filled a handful of new freshly charred American white oak barrels with some of their finest whiskey. It is rare for Bourbon to age in barrels for more than twenty-three years. But these barrels patiently sat for over thirty years. The extra years developed a distinct and complex character that makes them truly one-of-a kind. We filled those barrels with Bourbon County Brand Stout, and then stored them away in our Chicago Barrel House to age for two more years. With these rare barrels from our friends at Heaven Hill we believe this is one of the finest beers we have ever produced. This is Goose Island Rare Bourbon County Brand Stout for 2015.
Recipe Information
Style: Imperial Stout Aged in Bourbon Barrels
Alcohol by Volume: 14.5%
International Bitterness Units: 60
Color: Midnight
Hops: Willamette
Malts: 2-Row, Munich, Chocolate, Caramel, Roast Barley, Debittered Black
4.2
193 reviews
Chicago, United States
Community reviews
Oily black pour from bottle. Thick and viscous. A little too sweet for me (as are many BCS variants) so it's a touch cloying, but has aged incredibly well with absolutely no signs of oxidation. Heavy barrel - bourbon, oak, vanilla, fudge and dark fruit. A sipper in every way.
W aromacie na pierwszym planie sos sojowy, dalej czerwone suszone owoce, nuty palone, drewno, bourbon.
W smaku pełne, czekolada i sos sojowy, melasa, dziwna nuta ziołowa, przypomianjąca syrop na kaszel. Finisz bourbonowy.
Sample at Belgium Chimipalooza. Aroma is straight bourbon attack, then some chocolate sauce, pralines, light roast, dark ripe fruits. Very sweet, medium bodied, intense bourbon feeling, but the base is still present.
A beer which is totally dominated by the barrel ageing process. Don't get me wrong it is really nice. But kind of a let down on complexity.
Pours a pitch black coloration with almost no head whatsoever. Very strong bourbon nose with some chocolate and perhaps oak coming through as well. The bourbon is quite overpowering, although not necessarily in a bad way. Taste follows the nose, with a very strong, nuanced and overpowering bourbon note. Some chocolate, oak and just a hint of vanilla coming through as well. Quite a bit of hot boozyness coming through in the aftertaste. Body is thick and oily, with a smooth, creamy mouthfeel and low carbonisation. This is poorly balanced in my opinion, with the bourbon being way to overpowering. I honestly prefer the normal BCBS with its sublime balance of chocolate, coffee, vanilla and bourbon to this, where the hot, boozy bourbon just overpowers everything else.
Taster@willows: Heavyweighter; straight bourbon, full body, fudge, chocolate, but still prefer the regular one: at least it's several times cheapest..
Backlog. Viscous black with no head. Strong bourbon presence with chocolate, a light roast, molasses, oak, vanilla, raisins and muscovado. Full bodied. Great sipper!
Pours black as the night with minimal head. Aromas has notes of roasted malts, bourbon, raisins, dades, muscavado, leather, light notes of coconut and chilies . Taste has notes of bourbon, burned licorice, raisins, dades, soy, leather, muscavado, coffee. Mouthfeel is creamy, slightly alcohol, low carbonation , full bodied, low bitterness
Pours black with almost no head. Aromas of dark chocolate, vanilla, raisins, leather, muscovado sugar, dried fruits, bourbon. Taste is caramel with bourbon, fennel seeds, burnt notes, roasted malt. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with moderate carbonation and very sticky and oily.
Pours black with flat tan head. Aroma of bourbon, muscovado, raisins, dried fruit, chocolate, vanilla. Taste is rich boozy, fiery alcohol, burnt liquorice, alcohol warming finish. Rich and oily body with soft carbonation.
A monster stout, intensely flavorful (but also intensely sugary and boozy) with a thick mouthfeel and an ever lasting finsih. It's really intense and I'm getting too old for this but I was able to drink it solo so I guess it wasn't bad. It's not even close to b1 in terms of complexity though.
Bouteille (500 ml) en solo à la maison. Couleur noire opaque, pas de col si ce n'est un mince filet beige. Au nez, l'alcool et les barriques sont d'une intensité que j'ai rarement rencontré dans une bière avec du sucre à n'en plus finir, des fruits rouges et des plus foncés (figues notamment), du chocolat et des malts rôtis à profusion, des notes de sauce soya, de la vanille et bien d'autres choses. Au goût, c'est sucré, fruité et alcoolisé, mais étonnamment ça tombe moins sur le cœur que bien des RIS plus fortes en alcool. Le corps est dense, voire lourd. La carbonatation est faible. La texture est huileuse, presque visqueuse, avec la barrique qui transpire à chaque gorgée. La finale persiste longtemps et l'alcool réchauffe fortement, toujours prêt à brûler, mais sans se résoudre à le faire. J'ai passé l'âge de ces stouts monstrueuses, mais j'ai tout de même achevé la bouteille en solo signe que c'est loin d'être mauvais.
Bottle finally decided to break it open. Pours oily black with hardly any head. Aroma is cloying sweet sugary bourbon coffee chocolate soy. Taste is sugary sweet soft bourbon slight soy bitterness chocolate coffee vanilla. Palate is full sticky and warming.
Bottle at The Willows. Black color, brown head. Bitter taste with roasted malts, bourbon, oak, vanilla, dried fruits, chocolate, toffee, nuts, dark fruits and a bit of licorice. Bitter finish with roasted malts, bourbon, coffee, vanilla, oak, dried fruits, nuts, toffee and a bit of dark fruits. Exquisite imperial stout.
Rami Rami is drinking a Rare Bourbon County Brand Stout (2015) by Goose Island Beer Co. at garwolińska
fajna beczka, fajna paleta, fajne cialo, ewidentnie za duzo alko, z takimi jakby pikantnymi posmakami. Podoba sie mocno, ale... wole podstawke chyba. Przepieknie gladdka faktura. Musi postac zeby alko ulecialo
Dark as night. Viscous and thick body, with incredibly intense boozy bourbon flavors that combine with chocolate and dark malts through the long, spicy finish. The spice and chocolate linger for minutes; this has as long a finish as I've ever tasted in a beer.
Bottle at T&M's. Pours an opaque black with a tiny diminishing head. Quite sweet with aromas of vanilla ice cream and bourbon. Also notes of all sorts licorice. Also notes of maple syrup and hints of alcohol. Full bodied. Medium to soft carbonation. Long sweet finish with more bourbon and hints of alcohol.
Bottle at Mette & Theis thanks to sunevdj. Black with a tiny light brown ring of foam. Licorice all sorts, vanilla, roasted malt, dark wood, brown sugar, booze. Full body, heavy sweet and bitter with mild acidity. Long finish with wood, vanilla and licorice all sorts.
Bottle at Theis & Mette.
Black colored with a small beige head.
Roasted aroma of caramel and dried fruits with notes of alcohol.
Roasted flavor of caramel and dried fruits with notes of alcohol.
Roasted finish.
Bottle @ Grinding & Winding in Grindsted. Black body with a small offwhite head. Roasted malt, chocolate, oak, coffee. A bit to high on the carbonation.
Bottle. Pours black with a tan head. Aroma of bourbon - quite alot of alcohol, licorice, wood - herbal spice, vanilla, coffee slight, chocolate, light butterscotch, selleri, nutty. Taste is rather sweet, loads of barrel, vanilla, licorice, nutty.
Bottle. Grinding & Winding tasting, 2017. Pitch black with brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, toffee, chocolate, coffee, vanilla, bourbon, Complex. Heavy sweet and moderate bitter with lingering bourbon notes and alcoholic warmth. Full and creamy to sticky. A good one..
Bottle @ Windin' and Grindin' in Grindsted, 2017. Pours black with a creamy beige head. Heavy roast, wood and soy. Good coffee. Slick and creamy. Vague alcohol warmth.. Supreme.
Bottle at Grinding & Winding in Grindsted tasting. It pours jet black with a beige head. The aroma is huge bourbon with cocoa and vanilla notes. The flavor is sweet roasted with bourbon, oak, vanilla, cocoa, dark fruits and has quite some alcohol notes.
Backlog PAKK 2017. Wspaniała beczka z lekką wanilią, utlenienie intensywnie wiśniowe, piwo gęste, oleiste, alkohol szlachetnie i solidnie rozgrzewa przełyk. Uzupełniające nuty czekolady i kawy, subtelne orzechy w posmaku, trunek podobny do tańszego i według nas nieco lepszego Warpigs Smoldering holes eagle rare.
Poured from a bottle, back in February - found old notes when clearing out my phone, go figure. Poured a dark brown color, ruby edges. Still head. Aroma was bourbon, dark chocolate, fruits. Bourbon smoothness to this one, woody vanilla - not strong, just a touch hidden in there. Glad to be able to try this one, though I still think it’s one of the dumbest beer names.
Jet black pour with no head. Barely any visible carbonation. Aroma has lots of oak, fudge and a hint of vanilla. Very pleasing aroma. Big thick body. How does GI always get such great body out of their BA offerings? Taste is full of chocolate and fudge. Some hints of bourbon as well. Alcohol heat right away, but isn’t terrible. Very tasty and has aged just fine.
Bottle. Teku. Pitch black with tiny, thick, light brown head. For head retention and lacing. Aroma is dominated by barrel and roasted accents - mainly milk chocolate, cocoa, some coffee. The barrel notes are excellent - full of vanilla, some coconut and excellent barrel accents. The booziness partly dominates the aroma, but in very good way. Taste is sweet, full of vanilla, some coconut, milk chocolate, this is real bomb. Like it.
How: Bottle.
Where: Tasting 2017-05-06.
Appearance: Black colour with a beige head.
Aroma: Vanilla, malt, alcohol, bourbon, coffee.
Body: Full body, low carbonation.
Flavour: Bourbon, vanilla, alcohol, coffee.
Bottle thanks to Wickedestman. Compact taste of dried fruits, liquorice, salt, warm alcohol, toffee and dark berries. Some dryness from wood in aftertaste. Very elegant.
Impressive aroma of bourbon, malt, caramel. Aroma is extremely long lasting even from empty glass.
Taste of malt, caramel and some lite roasted notes.
Creamy and warming