Imperial Russian Stout - Bourbon Barrel Aged - Stone Brewing Co.

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BA SCORE
99
world-class
-
275 Ratings

rAvg: 4.51
pDev: 9.53%
Reviews: 103
Hads: 172

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Stone Brewing Co.

California, United States

Style | ABV
Russian Imperial Stout | 11.50% ABV

Availability: Rotating. on-tap (77), growler (22), cask (2), bottle (2).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (95) | Reviews (246) | Events (4)

Reviews

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Reviews by tarheels86:

tarheels86

California

4.23/5 rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Tap at Alewife Baltimore for Stone Total Tap Takeover. Poured near ink black with ruby highlights. Tan bubbles cling onto the sides of the glass but no head forms. Aroma is beautiful buttery bourbon, coconut, vanilla, oak, rich smokiness. Taste is a giant smack in the face of unsweetened, bitter chocolate, smoked malt, hot bourbon moving very quickly to silky chocolate, coconut, vanilla ice cream. Palate goes from soft to chalky and bitter cacao powder. About six seconds after tasting this I knew exactly why it is in the ratebeer Top 20. Everything is there: the aroma, the body, the palate. It is like Bourbon Country Stout with a little less richness and less of a superlative palate. 10/24/2010 8/4/9/4/16=4.1

Serving type: on-tap

11-13-2012 21:27:20 | More by tarheels86

More User Reviews:

smitty5245

California

4.25/5 rDev -5.8%

06-07-2013 15:35:56 | More by smitty5245

HoppyLuckyGoGo

California

4.25/5 rDev -5.8%

06-06-2013 19:13:39 | More by HoppyLuckyGoGo

GeorgiaBeerGuy

Georgia

4.75/5 rDev +5.3%

06-05-2013 12:12:56 | More by GeorgiaBeerGuy

unclekeith

Alaska

4/5 rDev -11.3%

06-04-2013 15:44:14 | More by unclekeith

Danobold

Texas

4.5/5 rDev -0.2%

05-29-2013 01:52:10 | More by Danobold

Jeffo

Netherlands

3.93/5 rDev -12.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle filled at the brewery and brought over by forgetfu for the pre-TdG'13 bash. At least I think that's who it was...

From a bomber into a snifter

APPEARANCE: Pours out black with a small, bubbly, dark tan head that slowly fades to a ring only. Black body with no carbonation evident. Head fades to a ring only and leaves some dots down the glass.

SMELL: Bolder nose of bourbon, oak, vanilla and caramel for sure. Some milk chocolate as well, though bourbon and caramel take the lead role here. Pretty nice.

TASTE: Some roasted barley up front, then some bourbon barrel flavors, vanilla and oak at the swallow. Milk chocolate as well, with a bold finish of bourbon barrrel and alcohol. Tasty, though the barrel does take the leading roll.

PALATE: Medium body and medium levels of carbonation. Creamy enough on the palate, decent going down and finishes rather dry on the palate. Decent enough here.

OVERALL: This was really nice. I'm not a massive fan of the base beer, but the bourbon barrel aging, which was rather up front I must admit, made the beer generally more enjoyable. I'd love to do this side-by-side with the regular version, so let's hope Stone decides to release the barrel aged version en mass one day. Hint hint. Thanks again forgetfu, or whoever brought this to wherever I was.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2013 19:52:34 | More by Jeffo

mtrog313

Michigan

3/5 rDev -33.5%

05-27-2013 23:33:35 | More by mtrog313

CATVDK

Maine

5/5 rDev +10.9%

05-23-2013 22:39:25 | More by CATVDK

Drucifer

Illinois

4.21/5 rDev -6.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

On tap at Bangers & Lace in Chicago; 2010 vintage

A: Black with a dark brown head; moderate carbonation

S: Pretty even split between dark fruits and bourbon, not much else

T: Big dark fruits followed by subtle bourbon/oak/vanilla/roast

M: Full bodied, but not too thick. It's pretty typical for the style

O: A very interesting offer from Stone. It's definitely tasty and I'm quite surprised how fruity it is. I enjoyed it quite a bit more as it warmed up and highly recommend it if you see it on tap. I do prefer the non-BA version, but this is still a very good beer.

Serving type: on-tap

05-22-2013 03:39:47 | More by Drucifer

ystazi

Illinois

4.75/5 rDev +5.3%

05-22-2013 02:49:43 | More by ystazi

mdaschaf

Washington

4.48/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Had on tap at Brouwers stout fest. 2008 vintage.

A: Served in a goblet, BBL RIS was dark black with a very small brown head on top that dissipated quickly. No lacing on this beer, not overly surprising.

S: Plenty of bourbon right away, it really dominates the aroma, a bit surprising after 5 years. Some chocolate with a little bit of caramel and brown sugar.

T: Similar to the aroma, lots of chocolate (sort of like brownies) and bourbon. It was on the sweet side, with only some light roast. There was a bit of wood as well.

M: Full bodied with low to medium carbonation. Fairly smooth and surprisingly easy to drink, though that could have been because it tasted so good.

O: Been waiting to try this beer for a while, glad to have finally had the chance.

Serving type: on-tap

05-21-2013 11:35:52 | More by mdaschaf

PlinyBeMiney

California

4.25/5 rDev -5.8%

05-21-2013 07:45:22 | More by PlinyBeMiney

Blashawright

Texas

4.75/5 rDev +5.3%

05-16-2013 22:29:34 | More by Blashawright

strongaf

Washington

4.5/5 rDev -0.2%

05-11-2013 07:31:00 | More by strongaf

jmccraney

Washington

3.75/5 rDev -16.9%

05-11-2013 02:10:57 | More by jmccraney

HuskyinPDX

Washington

4.33/5 rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

2008 on tap right now at Brouwer's.

A - Served a very dark brown with a dark tan head the clings to glass and forms a small thin layer over the top.

S - Bourbon, chocolate. A touch of heat. A nice malt background.

T - Bourbon up-front. Subtle chocolate, malty background.

D - Mild carbonation and heavy body. Nice balance for an 08.

O - Nice to try this one. It's held up well nicely for an 08.

Serving type: on-tap

05-10-2013 18:25:15 | More by HuskyinPDX