Cigar City Marshal Zhukov’s Imperial Stout - Bourbon Barrel-aged

Brewed by Cigar City Brewing
Style: Imperial Stout
Tampa, Florida USA

Serve in Snifter

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Had at the Hunahpu release party as a part of RBWG 2010. Wow this is good. The aroma and flavor is amazing bourbon, wood, and stout characteristics. This stuff is awesome.

(Draught) Pours an opaque black body with a medium tan head. Aroma of bourbon, wood, roasted malt, toffee, chocolate, and coffee. Flavor of bourbon, baking cocoa, roasted malt, and coffee with a bitter, dry wood finish.

Draft at the brewery. In the glass sits a massive, dense, oily looking, pitch black menace. For a crown, it wears a tall, excellently retained head of spongy, dark brown foam. It’s hard to imagine a better looking imperial stout than this. The nose booms with sweet dark chocolate malt and loads of dark fruit, including fig and raisin. Dark caramel is rich and decadent, and it supports the vanilla that is imparted by the smooth, oaky barrel influence. Of course, there’s ample earthen roast to balance things out, along with a surprising hint of smooth, creamy lactose. Flavors follow suit, again insanely rich and deep, loaded with dark chocolate roast, coffee, and dark figgy fruit. Woody bourbon notes seem a perfect match, and add a warm, smoothing sensation that doesn’t overpower. Big and dense on the palate, there’s a bit more carbonation than I expected or wanted, which cuts down viscosity a bit and ushers in a slightly drying finish. It’s a fantastic base beer that’s made even better by the subtle bourbon influence.

on tap pours black with a medium dark tan head. Minerally aroma with notes of wood, bourbon and burnt malt. Creamy body, very roasty with lots of dark malt character that the bourbon does not cover up just sit beside. Nice sweet bourbon finish with lots of alcohol. Very nice.

Tap at the brewery. Pours jet black with a chocolate colored head. Huge bourbon, chocolate aroma, just wonderful. Chocolate, tobacco, bourbon all coming out in the taste, very complex. Super thick body, lots of oily legs in the glass. Just a world class ale.

Black pour. Brown head. Bourbon jumps out of the glass followed by lots of chocolate, roast, toffee, wood and vanilla. Flavor is up front bourbon with vanilla, toffee, roast, coffee and bitter chocolate. God damn, another amazing CCB stout. Kudos to Joe and Wayne and company!

Draft. Small brown head atop brown-black body. Aroma is moderately sweet, bittersweet chocolate, some Bourbon, vanilla. Taste is moderately sweet, alcohol/Bourbon, some chocolate, light roast. Smooth medium-full body.

On draft at the Hunahpus release. A: Pours uber black and full of evil like all CCB stouts. Nice deep dark head that exhibits pretty good retention and awesome lace. S: Very roasted lots of chocolate, espresso, and of course the barrel. T: Deep deep roasted malt, espresso, and hints of oak. Hints of bourbon and light vanilla in the finish. M: Rather full in body, bitter roast, dry finish. D: Not the most drinkable but a solid stout for sure.

UPDATED: MAR 14, 2010 Pours pitch black and completely opaque without even the faintest hint of lighter color when held to a light source. Two finger thick frothy dark chocolate coffee colored head with excellent retention, only slowly fading into a thick lasting cap. Chunks of soapy lacing left behind. Sweet bourbon aroma with a lot of earthy oak and subtle hints of vanilla which are a nice balance to the very roasty chocolate malt notes. Subtle hops along with roasted coffee and toffee. Chewy medium body that is only the fuller end of the spectrum with a lot of tight carbonation, possibly over carbed with a lot of intense roasty flavor up from that dominates and lingers throughout into a bone dry finish. Hints of chocolate malt and toffee but this beer is all about the roasted notes. The bourbon presence is faint with subtle sweet alcohol heat, vanilla and oak. The chocolate notes are more prominent as it warms. Decent but a bit too roasty for my liking.

So super smooth. Nice sweet mellow bourbon, vanilla, faint pepper. A little roast on the taste added to the vanilla and wood. Not overdone, really good.