Imperial Bourbon Barrel Braggot
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

Imperial Bourbon Barrel BraggotImperial Bourbon Barrel Braggot
Beer Geek Stats | Print Shelf Talker
From:
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company
 
Michigan, United States
Style:
Braggot
ABV:
16.5%
Score:
95
Avg:
4.39 | pDev: 13.21%
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
27
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 25, 2017
Added:
Jul 12, 2011
Wants:
  51
Gots:
  6
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Mora2000:
Photo of Mora2000
Reviewed by Mora2000 from Texas

4/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Thanks to bu11zeye for sharing this bottle. This was part of an epic 20 mead tasting, with 16 Kuhnhenn meads on hand.

Pours a dark brown to black color with a few tan bubbles. The aroma is heavy on the chocolate with some bourbon and honey notes mixed in. The flavor is more of the same. I get a lot of bourbon notes as well as some chocolate, honey and a little bit of soy. Medium mouthfeel. Nice, but I kind of wish the bourbon character was a little lighter.
Sep 19, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of buschbeer
Reviewed by buschbeer from Ohio

4.06/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12 fl. oz. bottle
Served in a Kuhnhenn snifter
2011

This beer is black in color. An aggressive pour yielded very little mocha head that leaves no lacing.

The smell in the bottle before I poured it was straight bourbon. Once decanted and warmed a little I could smell molasses, dates, figs, raisin, and brown sugar. As it warmed more I started getting aromas of blackberry and black currants.

Surprisingly, the bourbon taste is not dominant. It is evident more at first than in subsequent sips. The taste evolved in much the same way as the smell. I tasted a little bourbon and a lot of malt at first. It started very sweet with dates, figs, and molasses. Then I began to get some dark fruit flavors similar to that of blackberry. Hints of dates and figs intermingle with the blackberry. Finally, I get some vinous flavors. It has a lot going on. The alcohol is well hidden in the taste.

It has a sticky, syrupy mouthfeel with very little carbonation.

This was an interesting tasting experience. I enjoyed it. In the end it was more like a wine than a beer. The abv is going to kick my ass before the day is over.
Feb 25, 2017
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

4.31/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Bottle shared with Sean. I can't remember who picked this up for me at Kuhnhenn, but thanks!

A - A thin, quick-dissolving tan foam settles to nothing. Very dark brown body, with a glass-coating film to it.

S - Incredibly sweet, and quite delicious. Big mead component, with light roast from the beer, chocolate-dipped cherries, some bourbon, and light oak and vanilla.

T - There's a bit more chocolate and dry roast here, and a light char and oxidation note. I'm not sure if it occurred during the barrel-aging or from the age but I wouldn't sit on bottles any further. Mead and oaky barrel and vanilla come out significantly more as this warms up, slowly overwhelming the beer characteristics.

M - Super smooth for 15%. Low carbonation, a touch of roast and a good deal of tannic oak in the finish. Full-bodied, as you'd expect.

D - Very good stuff, with Kuhnhenn's usual well-hidden alcohol. I'd recommend drinking this closer to room temperature to minimize the mild oxidation note and maximize the mead characteristics. Sean and I put down 12oz with minimal trouble. Hope they make this one again.
Mar 21, 2013
 
Rated: 5 by Gonzoillini from Illinois

Jan 23, 2013
 
Rated: 5 by brian23456 from Minnesota

Jan 10, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by MrParker from Ohio

Aug 09, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by AndrewK from California

Jul 07, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by whartontallboy from New York

Jun 14, 2012
Photo of brystmar
Reviewed by brystmar from Texas

4.25/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
2011 vintage. Loved this my first time trying it back in Nov'11, hope it's still as good as I remembered.

Black pour, minimal head, beady lace. Strange aroma of bourbon, soy sauce, honey, (mild) rubber tires, booze, and raisins. Super weird, but I kinda dig it.

Taste somehow brings all of the above together in a harmonious blend. Rubbery and soy saucey for a moment before fading into honey-soaked dark fruits, then somehow finishes bone dry with lingering bourbon. Not sure what the hell just happened here, but I love it!

ZERO booze content in the taste, in typical Kuhnhenn style. Again, it's weird as hell, but something about it clicks for me. Need another bottle (or five) of this stuff, STAT!
Jun 14, 2012
 
Rated: 4.75 by monitorpop from Michigan

May 20, 2012
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

4.27/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Absolutely inspiring delicious braggot, a great mead. Black bodied, roast and wine aroma. A great drinker despite the alcohol. Some raison,honey,wood, malt and hops, the bourbon is merely another rich aspect of the complex flavour.Only a tad astringent. Something special. Thanks for sharing Tim.
Mar 12, 2012
Photo of dogfishandi
Reviewed by dogfishandi from New York

4.77/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
huge thanks to sliverx for sharing this at our last tasting!

2011 Vintage. 12oz bottle poured into a bruery snifter.

pours out pretty much black with minimal head but lots of thick sticky legs left on the glass.

the aroma is full of sweet mead like notes, lots of molasses, honey, dark fruits.

wow, so flavorful. pure raisons have to be the most predominant flavor. ive never had a raisony taste this pure in any beer before this. big port and sherry notes, but still lots of mead qualities. sweet honey, molasses and soy with a touch of vanilla and slight hints of bourbon. so nice...

carbonation was just a touch on the spritzy side, but the body of this is thick and syrupy. feels a lot like drinking a wine, but there is also a beery like feel.

this is really quite an amazing beverage. so unique and complex. ive never had anything close to this and doubt i ever will. definatly in the top 10 beers of all time for me.
Mar 12, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by bsuedekum from Missouri

Mar 07, 2012
Photo of maximum12
Reviewed by maximum12 from Minnesota

4.57/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Thanks to splax23 for this brew in a fall-time trade. As usual, didn't realize this was an ABV-killer until after popping the top, but hey, oh well.

Pour is black, with a head that wouldn't even warrant a comb-over, & vanishes almost as it appears. Metric ton of sweetness in the nose, & no end to the burnt honey. Nose-curling booze.

Imperial Bourbon Barrel Braggot is a sticky sweet, crap-your-pants, alcoholic bomb. But instead of stinging, it's syrupy alcohol, like a overly rich brandy, though that's not quite right either. But pretty close. Massive dose of dark honey, of course. Knowing all the types of flavors that can be imparted to honey by the pollen the bees are feeding on, I wish I could pick that out, because it tastes familiar. Strong vanilla character standing in for the barrel, I presume. Caramel & toffee underneath the riot. Wildly sticky & gummy in the mouth. So good that one twelve ounce bottle didn't seem enough at first, but as I dig deeper, well, it might just be. I'm almost full already.

Insane beer. Of the braggots I've tasted, this one is a category-killer, just complex & delicious, the one I've been looking for. Simply incredible.
Feb 16, 2012
Photo of brokensail
Reviewed by brokensail from California

2.72/5  rDev -38%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Thanks for this one, Steve.

Pours almost black in color with a very small off-white head. Pure booze on the nose. A bit of actual bourbon, but primarily booze. There is a little bit of honey and sweet malt, too. The sweetness is almost overwhelming. Pure honey and graham cracker, maybe some vanilla. A little bit of bourbon, but quite a bit of booze overall. Medium body with very low carbonation.
Jan 09, 2012
 
Rated: 5 by hoppymcgee from Maine

Dec 22, 2011
 
Rated: 4.25 by JAHMUR from Connecticut

Dec 09, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by oline73 from Maryland

Dec 05, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by HopStoopid120 from Connecticut

Nov 15, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by Photekut from Tennessee

Nov 14, 2011
Imperial Bourbon Barrel Braggot from Kuhnhenn Brewing Company
Beer rating: 95 out of 100 with 27 ratings