Lost Coast Bourbon Stout

Brewed by Lost Coast Brewery & Cafe
Style: Imperial Stout
Eureka, California USA

Serve in Snifter

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Nearly black. Brown pour. Lots of roasted malt, light bourbon, oak, chocolate and a little coffee. Flavor is dry, cocoa, bourbon, burnt sugar. I was hoping for more.

Black color with tan foam. Milk chocolate, bourbon, medium roast coffee aromas. Full bodied with soft co2. dark chocolate, dry wood, deep roast malt, mild tobacco flavors, roasty toasty finish--good.

Served on tap at the 15th San Diego Strong Ale Festival. The appearance is a deep matte black hue. The aromas have a full well roasted malt profile with some solid bourbon barrel notes. The oak and roast complement each other well. The flavors really follow suit. A well roasted malt profile with good baker’s chocolate, and coco powder to it. The oak from the barrels really plays well. A pretty full mouth, not boozy at all. I don’t think I’ve ever had the regular 8-ball to compare but a solid brew.

Appearance: pure black dirt under a khaki head which lingers a soft collar. Swirls thicker along the edges while retaining its obsidian depths.
Nose: wood, bourbon, and vanillin. Melted caramel nougat. Roasted chocolates dark and decadent in the back. Bourbon forward, then stout. Further hints of earth and dirt and twigs. Black root and vanilla root – subtle. Espresso beans.
Palate: wow. Rich, roasted, rustic, and bourbon. Vanilla extract, caramel, and oak. Surprisingly soft and frothy with a moist cakey texture, chocolate please. Flavor concentrates in the middle of each quaff. Bourbon chocolate vanilla caramel truffle breath. Gentle warmth subtle in the chest. Oak is a silent partner of dryness, roast, ash, and charred black earth.
Final Thoughts: it was more than I was expecting and exactly what I was expecting. While not a big bad imperial stout aged in big bad bourbon barrels, Lost Coast’s 8 Ball nonetheless maintains what it showcases best: class.

Draft… Pours black, but clear enough to reveal a dirty orange hue around the edges of my glass. Large, frothy, khaki head. Great retention. The nose offers notes of cola, chocolate syrup and vanilla… I’m begging for bourbon, but no dice. Medium to full-bodied with tickling carbonation. Leans bitter with a roasted, charcoal, alcohol bite; but chocolate and vanilla sweetness smooth out many of the otherwise rough edges. I’m assuming the barrel aging contributes to this beers elevated smoothness over the traditional 8 Ball Stout, but I’m pulling no bourbon or oak from the aroma or flavor. Lengthy, vanilla, boozy, bitter finish.

On tap at the AZ Strong Beer Fest, February 2011. Pours near black with a light tan head. The nose is roast, vanilla, chocolate, coffee and bourbon. The taste is ashy cocoa, coffee, roasted malt and bourbon. The barrel is subtle but you can tell it’s there. Medium bodied. Pretty good.

UPDATED: DEC 8, 2006 On tap. Pours pitch black with a medium sized tan head that sat thickly in the glass for a long time. Left big chucks of lacing on the side of the glass. Huge nose of roasted malts, chocolate, carmel, and fruit. Sort of like 8 Ball stout on steriods. Distinct palate of alcohol, and very rich on the tongue. This was the last of four different pours (and just 12 oz) so I did not get a chance to compare to 8-Ball but will do that next time. I suspect you can only get this at the Brewery and Cafe but if you are ever in Eureka you should give this a try. But like me, make it last one you try or everything else is going to taste like tap water as this stuff will set your taste buds on end. And yes, for those who wonder after all this, I did walk home as it is just a few blocks away. They should bottle some of this. I learned later that this a very limited release and they only make 55 gallons. I heard there s only 25 gallons left, so hurry to Eureka before this batch is all gone.