4.9 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 10/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 20/20UPDATED: DEC 4, 2012 100th Imperial Stout rating. Pours a pitch black color with a nice tan head. Aroma is super complex, I get lots of barrel character, lots of bourbon, oak, vanilla, coconut, bourbon soaked raisins, roasted malt, prunes, dark fruits, coffee, dark chocolate, tobacco, cocoa nibs, dark caramel, molasses and fudge. The flavor follows the nose with tons of barrel character, the bourbon, oak, vanilla, coconut, bourbon soaked raisins, prunes, roasted malt, coffee, dark fruits, tobacco, cocoa nibs, dark caramel, fudge, molasses and dark chocolate. Wow this is soooooo complex!! The body is full with a sticky and creamy mouth feel. By far the best Imperial Stout I have had, and probably one of my all time favorite beers!
0.5 AROMA 1/10 APPEARANCE 1/5 TASTE 1/10 PALATE 1/5 OVERALL 1/20
Crap from inbev they ruin everything.
4.2 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Draft at GI 25th block party. Pour is midnight black, no head. Aroma of very easy bourbon. Taste is very similar to the standard bourbon county. Not on the bourbon as the ’12 i had the other night. I guess the real difference is that this is much smoother, possibly the smoothest bourbon stout ive tried. However, the beer had zero carbonation. Not sure if it was due to the age or the keg. Overall ths was a very fine bourbon stout, just doesnt have much to seperate it from the regular bourbon county or justify the insane price it commands on the secondary market.
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Bottle @ ZeeBra Extreme Beer Festival 2013. Pitch black pour. Aroma is huge leathery bourbon, some alcohol, vanilla. A bit overpowered. Flavor is extreme bourbon, envision myself sitting in the wild west, in some old saloon with some rich cowboy smoking a huge cigar and drinking this ages old bourbon in front of me. Exquisite, but a tiny bit too much for me.
4.9 AROMA 10/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 10/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 20/20
Quick notes. 22 oz bottle into a tulip glass. Bottle #2209, bottled on 11/19/2010. Huge thanks to Doug for slaying my number one want by sharing a pour with me!
Appearance wise it is identical to BCBS, no surprise there. Having never had the 2008 vintage which this beer is using, I can say its awfully similar to how the 2009 vintage is drinking now. There is a stronger vanilla presence and it is smoother and mellower than the standard beer. Just loads of chocolate, charred malt, and rich and decadent bourbon. It drinks far too easily, which is sad considering how elusive it is now. A marginal improvement over standard BCBS, but when that is your favorite beer it truly does matter. Such a beautiful beer that I’m glad to have finally tried.
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Bottle @ ZeeBra. Aroma is huge bourbon, banilla, wood, liquorice and more bourbon. Flavour is big boozy nourbon, liquorice, roast vanilla and more. Too boozy imho, prefer the other versions.
4.8 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 10/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 19/20
Bottle shared by Steve - thanks, I’ve been wanting to try this one. Shared San Diego style, in the parking lot of a baseball game. Pours dark black with minimal head. Nose is vanilla and bourbon. Taste is very sweet vanilla, bourbon, dark fruit (I could swear I tasted raspberry). Balanced. Full bodied and smooth. Probably the best beer I’ve ever tried.
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
oooooooooooooow yeah! ZEBF 13
pours black, no foam.
very much bourbon in the smell, as well as a ’swimming pool scent’ ( water-ish ??? ) soft carbo. just like the regular, but the bourbon tastes better, i’d admit that. so better than i thought, but for me, its just overkill again ..
3.8 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 16/20
Very dark body and almost no head. Bit more roasted than the coffee version. Chocolate, sharp dark roasted malts, big bourbon. Refined yet a bit sharp. Not exactly for me. Too much barrel, affects the palate. Still good if course. (ZeeBra)
3.9 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Bottle poured jet black with a thin layer of head, and no retention.
Flavor of chocolate, soy and barrel. Can really taste the char from the pappy 23 barrels which gives Rare a distinct flavor over the other variants. Mouthfeel was oily and thick.
4.5 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 19/20
Backlog.
Enjoyed Rare at a Beer Tasting with some local beer snobs in Feb.
I knew this was going to be a fabulous tick, but man, I had no idea it would be so good!!
Aroma: Vanilla and bourbon.
Appearance: Dark black pour with minimal head
Taste: Sweetness from vanilla and bourbon plus the strength of the alcohol
Palate: Full body and smooth texture. Finish stayed well after each taste
Overall: Unbelievable!! So glad to have such good friends who share such great beers like Rare.
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