Name: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Somethin’ (2016)
Brewer: Wiley Roots Brewing Company (United States)
Style: Mixed-Style Beer (Base Style: Imperial Stout)
ABV: 13.6%
Review Year: 2020
In 2016, Colorado’s Wiley Roots Brewing Company released the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Somethin’, a barrel-aged Imperial Stout at 13.6% ABV brewed with hazelnuts and almonds. Earlier this year, we have acquainted ourselves with this rare four-year-old gem.
STYLE GUIDELINES
This beer is being evaluated as a Mixed-Style Beer (34B), combining Specialty Wood-Aged Beer (33B), and Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer (30A), with Imperial Stout (20C) as the base style in the context of the 2015 Beer Style Guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). The most current version of the guidelines can be found on the BJCP website.
TASTING NOTES
Murky deep brown almost black; very thin mocha-colored head. Tamed bourbon aromas meld with cola, wood, and chocolates. Jack & Coke, anyone? Full-bodied, low carbonation; slightly oily mouthfeel. Boozy bourbon flavors surface primarily alongside some prickling peppery heat most likely from the spirit. This bourbon character is then supported by faint chocolate sweetness, cacao maltiness, and a dark roasty coffee backbone. Some tannic astringency noted in the aftertaste; oily, dark chocolates, and hints of peppery heat. No acidic or tart-like qualities.
THE VERDICT
Very good. At four years old, the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Somethin’ delivers straight-up bourbon qualities to a base that showcases chocolate, cacao, and coffee-like flavors. The hazelnuts and almonds did not surface as we reviewed this. This was expected given the age of this beer. Meanwhile, the palate and mouthfeel held up relatively well through the years.
While additional wood-derived tannic astringency for Specialty Wood-Aged Beers is allowed, it should never be high. For us, the noted astringency is still palatable, but for others, it might be off-putting.
Now, we are curious about how a fuller-bodied variant with roastier malt character would fare with the bourbon-barrel aging.
