Schlafly Reserve Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
Around the time of the Louisiana purchase, beer was shipped in barrels. if one had been lucky enough to receive a used Bourbon barrel of Imperial Stout, this is what his/her happy taste buds would have encountered: roasty, rich, malty imperial stout with a strong dose of caramel, oak, and Bourbon character. This is the perfect beer to pair with hearty, cold weather dishes, smoked meats, and virtually any dessert.
3.8
612 reviews
St. Louis, United States
Community reviews
330cL bottle. Pours dark brown with a 1/2 finger cola head. Aroma is vanilla, oak, chocolate. Taste is vanilla and barrel up front with a hint of chocolate on the back side. Mouthfeel is medium. Overall, a very good BA stout. A little better than New Holland’s dragon’s milk, but not near Bourbon County.
750 ml bottle. Very dark brown in color, thin bubbly head. Aroma is chocolate, coffee, mild bourbon, light oxidization.
Mouthfeel is a medium maybe a little. Creamy mouthfeel. The flavor is very nice. Good amount of flavors, chocolate and coffee abound. Overall, pretty nice.
Poured from bottle thanks Airforcehops dated 7/28/15 vintage nice black with brown hues nice lacing and a mocha head. Aromas of bakers chocolate vanilla toffee bourbon and malt. Taste is creamy and smooth chocolate toffee slightly thin but still very quaffable.
2013 bottle. This pours a dark brown color with a light brown head. The aroma is rich and boozy with deep bourbon notes and toasted grains. The flavor is smooth, rich and tasty. A little thinner than I expected from the aroma but that’s not a big deal. Good rich bourbon flavors. Very nice find.
Bottle labeled Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout from the Ibex Cellar. $5.00 bottle from Wine Warehouse. Pours very dark brown with an inch of tan head. Aroma is heavy chocolate milk, definite bourbon. Flavor is wow - smack you in the face chocolate, bourbon, oak. Followed by a little coffee, vanilla, sweet dark fruit, toffee. Nice!
750ml bottle of 2015 Release. Not labeled as "Reserve" so hopefully this is the right beer to review. Nice mildly rich bourbon balances the malt and hops well.
750ml bottle been in my fridge forever - 2007 vintage. Pours ruby-black with a quick-diminishing fizzy tan head. Pretty light aroma - clean at least - faded vanilla bourbon and oak, very light roast, somewhat toffee-like, a tiny bit of mustiness - not bad at all! Taste follows - very much a slightly boozy chocolate toffee with a little more bourbon than the aroma, but still under control - maybe a hint of molasses - hardly any full-on impy stout character left after 10 years. Light body, surprisingly solid carbonation, quick-finishing with an acceptable sweetish bourbon linger. Very enjoyable, glad I finally got around to this one.
330 ml. bottle. Pours black with a decent tan head. Aroma of malt, chocolate, and coffee. Taste is roasted malt, dark chocolate, vanilla, and coffee. Very good. Will age a bottle or two.
Earlier Rating: 4/17/2013 Total Score: 3.8
On tap at the Bier Station in KC. Comes a very dark brown with a small tan head. Aroma of roasted malt, bourbon, vanilla, and coffee. Taste is roasted malt, dark chocolate, bourbon, coffee, vanilla, and caramel. Excellent Imperial Stout.
Bottled as "ibex cellar" pours opaque black and inky. Smells of oak, vanilla, cherry. Chocolate malt, coffee notes, wood. Great.
Not QUITE BCS, but in the same ballpark. Similar approach, just not quite all the subtlety and nuance that makes BCS king. Better than OR, but no harmony with chocolate (which is disapointing).
Bomber shared at Darkness day. Dark caramel pour. Strong whiskey aroma, not so much bourbon. Taste is boozy up front. Taste is the same, not a huge fan.
Bottle, thanks for sharing. Pours a clear very dark brown with a brown head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma has a decent amount of bourbon and earthy dark grains with light rossted malts supporting. Flavor has a lot of bourbon barrel with some earthy dark grains and a bit of musty roast.
Large 750 ml shared bottle.
Rich flavor with a good balance between the base imperial stout and the effects bourbon barrel aging. Balance continues all the way into the aftertaste.
O: very well crafted.
According to Saint Louis Brewing, this is the place to review the annual release of the Schlafly Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout, although the term "Reserve" was dropped, the label is different than the above photo on site, and 10.2 % abv appears on the 2015 bottle that I’m reviewing. The specific Chocolate, and the Coffee versions have been retired.
Shared this 750 ml. bottle with friends displaying a viscous pour to snifters, with a ruby highlighted, black/brown hue, frothy & persistent, brownish tan head foam, and wavy cling to the lacing. The nose was roasted, cocoa, caramel & toffee sweetness, touch of creaminess, hint of vanilla, and ready alcohol. Ditto on the taste, with a full body, and soft carbonation. Sweetness and subtle creaminess were consistent, with modest roasted & earthy bitterness, and a mellowed but effective edge to the bourbony booze. A go to, robust BB aged Imperial Stout with a year of maturity. Looks to be an excellent one to cellar.
Pretty much a standard imperial stout to the t. Black pour w/ a tan head & some lacing. The aroma is of black liqourrice, toffee, & bourbon. The taste has a touch of sweetness upfront & then finishes w/ just the right amount of bitterness. It isn’t as chewy as most imperials which makes it a little easier to drink fast. Overall, a very nice beer!
Deep brown, near black, with red tint. Aroma is coffee chocolate and biurbon. Taste is a sweet version of the nose. Enjoyable.
2015 bottle that no longer includes the word "reserve" in its name. It is listed as 10.2% abv. Aroma is rich and chocolate forward with some light roast notes. Medium light herbal and grassy hop aroma. Light bourbon and oak. Some light alcohol spice with hints of vanilla. Pours black with a medium large, moderately thick, tan head that slowly,but steadily recedes. Moderate lacing with medium small legs. Flavor has a medium sweetness with quite a bit of chocolate. Some light roast notes as well as light oak and bourbon. Medium hop notes with grass and woody notes. Some light dark fruit notes. Light vanilla in the finish as well as some alcohol spice. Medium high bitterness. Mouthfeel is medium full to full bodied and slightly creamy with medium carbonation. Low astringency and medium low alcohol warmth. Overall, a decent imperial stout with some nice, light bourbon notes. Nothing about this jumps out as an amazing beer, but it?s an above average stout. It definitely has a more traditional character to it.
draft that poured black with light tan head. thick heavy body. deep dark roasted malts, chocolate malts, coffee notes, bourbon, oak, vanilla, booze and sweet all in the nose. which transcends into the flavor. full mouth feel of dark fruit, chocolate hints of coffee, some bitterness lots of booze, the oak vanilla and bourbon come through. evenly mastered start to finish. excellent beer.
Bottle. Pours black with tan head. Nose is some nuts, chocolate and vanilla. Taste is similar with more bourbon. Also some dark fruit.
Slight sweet blueberry and candies. Aroma is barrel. A bit strange vanilla and old leather sweat. Carmel sweet toastness with a candy burnt ness . Candied. A bit thin on tongue for abv
Pours super dark brown with a small brown foam. Smells roasty, vanilla, hints of caramel. Taste is boozy, oak, vanilla, roast, hints of caramel and coffee. Full-bodied with a smooth texture and soft mouth-carbonation, Schlafly Reserve Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout finishes with a slight roasty bite and a touch of booze.
2013 vintage bomber into snifter glass, opaque deep dark brown color with dark tan head. Aroma notes of oak, bourbon whiskey, roasted malt, dark dried fruits, vanilla, light chocolate and some spices. Taste adds notes of milk chocolate, caramel, dark fruits, cappuccino, wood, light smoke and some earthiness. Heavy body, low carbonation, creamy, rich with sweet roast finish. Body feels heavier than already heavy ABV, nice rich full RIS.
Mix an ale, IPA, and a stout together and you get this. Its not a bad beer but I would not buy it again. Too much going on without anything awesome
A really nice stout. Thick and black with light mocha head. Really nice bourbon, vanilla, and milk chocolate aromas. Flavors are vanilla, booze, chocolate, some roasted malt and dark fruit, caramel as well. Quite sweet. Very good.
Bottled 10/22/13. Aroma of bourbon, slight oak, vanilla, nutmeg and sweet malt, kind of like a barleywine. Pours a dark brown with a fluffy tan head that sticks around forever. Tastes like oak, lots of bourbon heat and spiciness that lingers after the sip. A little too woody, palate is nothing special. I have had this many times fresh; I think I like it better that way. Also, unlike other imperial stouts, this one is better at a colder temperature.
Bottle to glass. Pours a deep brown to black color with a creamy medium brown head. Aroma is a nice roasted malts, burnt chocolate, light bourbon and vanilla. Flavor has a slightly harsh roasted malts, nice bourbon, vanilla, dark chocolate. Medium to heavy body with a lingering roasted malts and light burnt chocolate. Very tasty! Definitely gonna let my other one sit another year or two.
tap pour at 2SP..black color with slight film head to start that dissipates..nose is solid with definite bourbon undertones..vanilla mostly on the nose with a bit of cinnamon..chocolate...taste is nice pairs well with dessert not overly boozy or hot with a good lingering interesting presence from the barrel to keep things interesting..some butterscotch in there as well. .overall a nice offering that is a good dessert stout
Brown bottle, 1 pint 9.4 ounces, 2011 vintage, via Importations Privées Bièropholie (merci Hughes!), savoured on November 9 2014; eye: black, opaque, good sheet of beige head, average lacing; nose: bourbon, woody, roasted barley, light burnt barley, molasses, ink; mouth: bourbon, woody, roasted barley, light burnt barley, molasses, ink, alcohol, light pepper, finale in bourbon with woody presence, full body, below-average carbonation, lightly alcoholic texture; overall: quite fine
FRANÇAIS
Bouteille brune, 1 pinte 9,4 onces, millésime 2011, via Importations Privées Bièropholie (merci Hughes!), savourée le 9 novembre 2014; œil : noire, opaque, bonne couverture de mousse beige, dentelle moyenne; nez : bourbon, boisé, orge torréfiée, léger orge brûlée, mélasse, encre; bouche : bourbon, boisé, orge torréfiée, léger orge brûlée, mélasse, encre, alcool, léger poivre, finale en bourbon avec présence boisée, corsée, carbonatation sous la moyenne, texture légèrement alcoolique; en résumé : bien bon
2008 vintage poured from a 750ml bottle after cellaring an already 3-year old bottle for another 3 years plus.
This 6-year old brew poured out a dense frothy dark brown mixture of bubbles and beer, which quickly settled down to leave an opaque black-brown liquid with a 1-finger tan head (that did not linger) and a small, but respectable, amount of lacing.
Aroma of dark fruit, chocolate, roasted malt, vanilla and wood. I think Bourbon may be in there too, but it's masked by the intensity of the dark fruit and other aromas.
Taste of roasted malt, chocolate, dark fruit, vanilla, molasses, bourbon, caramel and charred oak.
Very full body and medium carbonation with a mouthfeel that makes you wish it you could just let it linger in your mouth.
I've tasted other vintages fresh. I'm not sure whether it's the aging or the vintage, but this bottle is better.
Poured a deep brown in my snifter. Not the big bold flavor expected from a barrel aged imperial stout but still very good. Big malt backbone that pronounces good flavor. It seems vanilla and banana notes come though the most. Nice on the palate, not bosey, not overly bitter. Good Impy stout, but not over the top.