Goose Island Bourbon County Stout - Bramble Rye Barrel

Brewed by Goose Island Beer Company (AB-InBev)
Style: Imperial Stout
Chicago, Illinois USA

Serve in Snifter

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Sampled at STL RB Gathering - Pours oily black with a tan head. The aroma has roasty smooth malt, plenty of raspberries and blackberries (very natural), licorice, molasses and alcohol heat - very rich and smooth. Medium / thick smooth rich body with a small amount of carbonation. The flavor starts with lots of roasty, berry sweetness, red wine and warming alcohol. The finish is spice, fruit and warming alcohol. This one was much sweeter than other in the BCS series, but it worked for it and was very enjoyable.

Bottle shared at RBWG
Appearance:Black with a small beige head, some lacing
Aroma: Roasted malts and dark fruit
Taste: Roasted malts, dark fruit, vanilla and woody
Nice and smooth. I really like these BA’d Bourbon county stouts

Sweet and fruity nose, but rather dull. Very sweet, fruity, lots of berry. Fuck this is sickly sweet. Worst BCS I’ve had.

Sampled multiple times at WhiskeyFest Chicago. The beer pours to a black body with a tan head. The aroma is quite good. Lots of dark fruits like blackberries and other fruits from spiked plants. There’s lots of chocolate malts, some anise, and rye whiskey. I quite enjoyed this beer. The palate was thick and coating, but not sticky. Rich beer.

UPDATED: FEB 4, 2012 Bramble. On tap at FOBAB 2011.. Med stouty cola dark brown pour with a thin soapy beige head... Brandy sweet aroma upfronnt with red berries, mostly raspberries on the backend smooth with milk chocolate and cocoa. Slight roast... Flavors consist of berry and somewhat medicinal qualities with sweet brandy notes. Pretty boozy overall with a medium less than full mouthfeel. From a raspberry infused imperial stout, i think i prefer claire’s thirsty. 7/4/7/3/14

Had this again from the bottle at GI Wrigleyville. aroma was fruit forward upon the initial pour. after warming for a bit, the stout opens up some by offering bits of mellow, soft, and subtle vanilla and bourbon undertones mesh with the lingering fruit. The barrel notes, paired with the spirit essence plays more of a prominent role in the nose more so than the following subsequent flavor profile.... flavor exhibit more of the aforementioned with an emphasis on the raspberries def more so blackberries. a bourbon brandy sweetness emits a warmth where the actual rye whiskey comes into play, i can’t say that it even does. roast remains absent which i first noted when this was offered up at fobab. the fruit lends itself to a mild tartness that develops late in the game. body is sticky and sweet, full but not syrupy. carbonation neither adds to it or take away from it. better than when i had it at fobab but still not a big advocate of it.

This poured a darker brown color with a lighter tan head. Aroma was of lots and lots of raspberries and blackberries, with small hints of whiskey and chocolate. Flavor was much the same, very sweet, a bit oo much one sided, almost tasted like a straight fruit beer, and was not well balanced with the great base beer that is BCS.

Had part of a shared bottle. Poured a dark black color. Aroma was dark roasted malts with chocolates, and some berries in there - blackberry, raspberry. Flavor was boozy chocolate with some mild sweet berry notes. Had this alongside the Coffee variety and enjoyed that one a lot more than this one. It worked as an interesting experiment, but I didn’t feel like it lived up to the hype (from friends and previous tastings). I’d focus my efforts getting one of the other varieties if I was really trying to get hold of one of these BCS.

FOBAB 2011. Pours a black colored body with a thin, creamy, brown head that dissipates slowly and leaves a nice lacing. Aroma is Bourbon County base with some berries coming out and a light rye spice. The fruit blends nicely with the sweet, rich malts and roasts. Flavor is similar. Lots of Bourbon County base with a berry fruitiness up front. Not overly tart, but the fruits do offer a light tartness and pleasant sweetness that blends well with the bourbon, sweet chocolate, molasses, and roast. The rye spice is light, but comes out more at the end as this dries with a nice fruit alongside the Bourbon County base. Lengthy aftertaste following a full, smooth body and a moderate, soft carbonation. Overall a pretty nice take on the original. The fruit is clearly present and adds a touch of tartness that works really well with the big malts, bourbon wood, and roasts of the base beer. The rye is light, but offers a touch of added complexity as well. I enjoyed the ghost pepper version more, but this was still a really nice variation.

Bottle: Poured a dark thick black with fast dissipating head, in fact it didn’t last much past the initial pour. The aroma is quite complex there is strong boozy bourbon at first whiff, however as I continued to smell I could pick up the berries. The taste is a mix of bourbon and slightly tart berry fruit, I really picked up a spicy finish at the end. Which I can only explain is the rye whiskey. This beer is a nice sipper. I appreciate savnac sharing this beer with me.

Bottle shared by Tmoney99. Pours dark brown to black in color with a small tan head that was gone almost as soon as I finished writing the appearance in my notebook. The aroma had roasted malts, chocolate, big blueberry and raspberry notes and bourbon. I was excited to try this one so here we go. The flavor had blueberry, raspberry, bourbon, some roasted malts and chocolate; the flavors that should have worked well together were not well integrated and were somewhat covered up by the alcohol notes and big sweetness. I will revisit this when it calms down hopefully.