Cellar Reviews

Many of you know that I have started aging my beer. My collection has grown to over 3 cases of beer. Occasionally I get to pull one of these beauties out of the dark and enjoy quite an intimate night with the beer. I managed to jot some notes down after 2 beauties: Goose Island Bourbon County Coffee Stout (Aged: 1 1/2 years) and Ballast Point Sea Monster Imperial Stout (Aged: 2 years). One of these is not available in Kentucky and the other might as well not be for all you can find. I will quit my babbling and move on now:


Ballast Point Sea Monster Imperial Stout

I picked this one up while I was in Florida last year. It already had nearly a year on it, and I was happy to set it aside for one more year before cracking into it. I heartbroken when I did. The nose was barely there and provided strong hints of raisin, oak, cocoa, vanilla, and rubbing alcohol. I was worried something had gone horribly wrong with the aging. The first taste immediately destroyed all doubts that I had. The flavor starts out quite bitter with strong flavors of espresso and dark chocolate. You can tell when the finish kicks in as it smooths out completely and brings about flavors of dark chocolate, brownies, cream, and espresso. This was my first experience with Ballast Point after hearing nothing but good things. After this, I will be spreading the word.

Mike's Rating - 9.5/10


Goose Island Bourbon County Coffee Stout

Yes, I busted one of these bad boys out. After a year and a half, I wanted to see what they had to offer. I recently read an article where some people suggested drinking them all fresh for the coffee flavors. However, when fresh it is too hot. The alcohol overpowers most of the flavors. Mine is a year and a half old...and I still think it needs more time. The nose is intriguing, but bourbon and vanilla lead the pack. Lighter aromas of dark chocolate, fudge, and roasted coffee emerge. The flavor starts out hot and a tad bitter with thick flavors of dark chocolate, cocoa powder, and coffee beans. The finish sweetens ever so slightly and offers flavors of milk chocolate, vanilla, wood, bourbon, and a touch of raisins and roasted coffee. Other than the heat, it was a brilliant stout easily worth its praise.

Mike's Rating - 9.75/10