Cigar City Imperial Milk Porter - Stranahan’s Whiskey Barrel-aged

Formerly brewed at Cigar City Brewing
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Tampa, Florida USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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bottle. black pour with minimal head. thin body. aroma of nice whiskey, vanilla, and huge lactose. flavor is intensely woody, with milk chocolate, marshmallow, and graham cracker. a tad spicy, but overall too sweet, boozy, and thin due to the whiskey dominance.

Pours black in the glass with only a hint of mahogany showing through the edges. The head is big and thick and sticks around for ages with good lacing. Aroma, not surprisingly, is dominated by the whiskey. However, there is a lots of sweet milk chocolate and roasted malts. There is plenty of oak and vanilla. Taste starts with a massive initial blast of whiskey but has an interesting bitterness as well. The whiskey really stings the palate and leaves a burn in the finish. There is also a bitterness that I wasn’t expecting...maybe it’s the spiciness of the oak, but something’s in the there. The mouthfeel is fantastic, full bodied with strong carbonation and dessert-like. The aroma and feel of this are excellent and if it weren’t for the slightly distracting tinge of bitterness in the taste, this would be absolutely world class. Another solid brew from CCB.

Bottle thanks to cquiroga. Tasted blind. Pours with a black body and a small tan head that clings. Aromas of lactose, milk sugar, light oak, rum, bourbon (whiskey I guess), oak and lots of chocolate. Very rich. Flavors are quite sweet with chocolate and vanilla. Chocolate and roast. Medium tannins and a light maple/whiskey note. Medium bubbles, light tannic edge with a light duration. Good.

Bottle from the brewery. The color is a very dark brown that pretty much looks black once poured. A nice tan head develops before fading off to the sides. Spotty lacing sticks to the glass. The aroma is really quite nice; lots of whiskey and barrel notes, along with some chocolate, licorice, and rum cake. Perhaps a touch of dark fruit in there too. This drinks pretty smooth, with carbonation that seems about right. A touch prickly in the finish. This has a charred woody flavor with vanilla, light caramel, and of course, whiskey. The whiskey seems slightly toned down from the aroma but still at the forefront. Overall not quite as much depth as the aroma had me thinking though, but still very good. I’m picking up the lactose more in the flavor, at least at first, but it’s still not all that noticeable. At 9% this isn’t quite as full-bodied and potent as many other barrel-aged brews I’ve tried, but I kind of like that fact. This is a really good beer, one that I enjoyed more as I drank it.

Bottle courtesy of bmanning at last Sunday’s tasting. Boy oh boy do I love it being football season. There’s nothing like 11 hours of football and casual tasting. Served in a snifter. Pours black with a quickly-diminishing off-white head. Sparse lacing and a bit of a collar. The nose brings forward chocolate and coffee and just a bit of oak and vanilla behind a fairly-heavy whiskey presence. The flavor isn’t quite as whiskey heavy, but it’s certainly the dominant component. Medium body with light sweetness and a chewy texture. Not their best stout, but quite good.

This poured a dark brown color with a beige head. Aroma was lots of dark fruit and bourbon, some acidic notes and chocolate too. Tastes was very sweet, like chocolate covered rapsberries, light bourbon and cognac, interesting but a bit thin and underwhelming.

Bottle many thanks to 50belair. Deep dark brown pour, almost black, with a nice creamy tan head. Milk chocolate, lots of roast, medium-sweet malts, more chocolate, vanilla-bourbon, and light oak notes. Smooth creamy mouthfeel. A tasty brew.

750ml bottle from the brewery - brought up by wilkes and lynn (thanks!). Big roasty chocolate, vanilla, and oak. Taste is milky sweet toffee, vanilla, fudge, caramel and coffee. Silky medium texture. Nice sipper - though a little sweet for my tastes.

Bottle from Paul Unwin. Thanks dude! Shared with Leighton. Pours jet black with thin head. Nose is potent sweet bourbon whiskey, lactic and vanilla. Taste is very sweet and sour. Sweet whiskey and sour lactic and raw choc, prune and coffee bitterness. Earthy and something quite raw and alcoholic on the finish. All too overpowering for me and doesn’t work on the palate for me. Too much of a hot burn on the finish. I should say I’m not a big fan of whiskey barrel flavoured beers.

Bottle at CPK, shared with EdKing and Paul Unwin. Just a huge thanks to Paul - what a legend. Pours brown with a beige head. Big whiskey aroma, lots of booze-soaked, dark fruits. Flavor has a slight tang to it, with medium sweetness, some peat, hard alcohol. Full bodied with fine carbonation and warmth. Mild (just mild) heat in the finish, a bit of brown sugar, some dark and tangy fruits, mild booze. Dark raspberries, maybe some bourbon. Pretty nice balance overall. Nice barrel incorporation.