Central Waters Brewers Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout

Brewed by Central Waters Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Amherst, Wisconsin USA

Bottle. Clear brown coloured with an off white head. Roasted aroma with lots of oak and chocolate. Roasted flavour of oak, chocolate and vanilla.

Bottle. Dark brown colour with a brown head. Light roasted, Wood, vanilla aroma and a light sweet roasted, wood, vanilla taste. Medium to full body with a long wood, light alcoholic finish.

Dark brown color; thin head. The aroma, quite strong, has mature sweet vanilla and old wood, tobacco. The flavor is dominated by this bourbon vanilla cask, even if ends with more roasted malt and bitterness (and a hint of coffee); alcohol perception, burning. Good but too much monodimensional.

Dark with abundant initial head, bourbon malt and alcohol aroma, and some stout. Very smooth and refreshing with a regular meal. Some coffee, well malted, vanilla, chocolate, prominent and not overbearing bourbon. A lovely beer, courtesy of Captain Couger in Atlanta.

Bottle (12oz). Courtesy of Ughsmash. Poured opaque deep brown-black with a small vanishing tan head. Aroma is deeply roasty and deeply yeast-funky - there’s nut, chocolate, rye and barley graininess, mushroom, alcohol, even a bit of slightly sour milk ; with a huge overlay of bourbon - intriguing. Taste is heavy on the bourbon, the nutty roast malt is almost sour, but still nice, there’s appreciable hops here, and quite a bit of alcohol; this would be a lot nicer with less bourbon character and more malt body to it. Mouthfeel is thin, slightly sour, fairly still - I like it, but if this once was a 4+ brew, it isn’t any more; give us more body!

One time I had this, there was too much diacetyl, and the other time the body was watered down and overcarbed. So I cant see where the hype is for this beer. Pours a decent black color, nice tan head. Aroma of butterscotch, light rubber, phenols, chocolate malt, roasted barley and some bourbon. Flavor starts out with a bit of bourbon then gives way to the dark malts, dark fruits some tobacco and more diacetyl. Drier finish than expected, possibly due to a higher carbonation.

This beer has an aroma infused with the fragrances of chocolate, smoke, and sour mash. It is a dark mahogany colored solution with only a hint of a head. This thin beer thickens as it flows through the mouth. It is sweet when it first enters the mouth and produces smoky chocolate taste. As this beer leaves the mouth the flavor changes to a mild sour coffee taste that lingers well.

Dark brown black pour with a wine colored fringe and sticky lacing in tan. Weak aroma of vinous alcohol, with a hint of bourbon and berries. Flavor a weak sour cherries, vinous and charred oak. Some sweet and sour sauce, with a light bourbon cascade, over gentle roasted coffee and oak. Coffee is more pleasent and carries the roasted flavors, but this is pretty weak. Ridiculously thin for the style. Smack and finish are a hard bourbon and light oak. Here, there’s just too much barrel and not enough beer.