Batch 31 Barrel Aged Imperial Stout With Coffee - 8 Wired Brewing Co.

lacqueredmouse

Australia

4.5/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is my 2000th beer review, and what more deserving brewery is there for it than 8 Wired, who are really turning out some of the best beers in the world.

This one looks the part as it's poured into the glass: a sensuous slick of black-brown, that forms some slightly bubbly, deep brown head. Lacing is minimal, but the weight of the body ensures that there's something sticking to the glass at least. Body is surprisingly fluid, while maintaining its gravitas. Excellent stuff.

Nose is potent: big roasted stout notes, mingled with some softening oak characters, but the main event is the coffee, lending a brusque bittersweet bite that clears the sinuses. It's fragrant and bold, but still welcoming. It lends it fruitiness, oaten biscuits, and almost a vegetative piney character. Wonderful stuff. So powerful and complex, but so inviting.

Taste is also as good as you would expect. The coffee is powerful again here, but the base beer supports it. Firm chocolate, dark cacao, and biscuity, deep stout characters give an already roasty, burnt character, and to layer the coffee on the top just pushes it to excessive intensity. Excessive is too harsh: it's melodramatic and intense, and over-the-top, but that's exactly what it needs.

Feel is fluid and smooth, but with a sparkle or tingle from that coffee. Intense stuff.

Oh yes, wonderful stuff from 8 Wired. This is very intense and very complex, but hangs everything off that potent coffee character. It gives it a centre, a purpose, and allows you to comprehend something solid in the madness surrounding you.

Serving type: bottle

08-06-2012 07:18:41 | More by lacqueredmouse

nesarebad

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +4.9%

05-13-2013 02:32:39 | More by nesarebad

TheBadger0289

New Zealand (Aotearoa)

5/5  rDev +16.6%

05-11-2013 01:12:23 | More by TheBadger0289

cadaugherty

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +4.9%

05-08-2013 01:41:35 | More by cadaugherty

griffeyb

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev -0.9%

04-07-2013 03:51:49 | More by griffeyb

meanmutt

Ohio

4/5  rDev -6.8%

04-06-2013 04:33:47 | More by meanmutt

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.39/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

A: Pours an opaque jet black in color with some light amounts of dark brown highlights and no perceivable visible carbonation. The beer pours with a quarter finger tall dark tan head that quickly reduces to a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Minimal amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Strong aromas of freshly roasted coffee beans with some lighter notes of dark roasted malts. There are light notes of freshly charred oak barrels. Very light notes of chocolate.

T: Upfront there are some light to moderate flavors of dark roasted malts before the coffee flavors really take over - flavors of freshly brewed espresso. There is a really pleasant acidity from the coffee beans which I really enjoy. Additionally there are some light amounts of dark chocolate and freshly charred oak barrels.

M: Full bodied with light to moderate amounts of carbonation. Light hints of dryness in the finish.

O: Huge amounts of coffee in this beer - which I really enjoyed as I am a huge coffee fan. The alcohol is exceptionally well hidden in this beer and it is fairly easy to drink. Nice amounts of complexity to the flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2013 20:15:21 | More by dbrauneis

metter98

New York

4.26/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

A: The beer is jet black in color in poured like motor oil, leaving only a thin collar around the edge of the glass and some wispy lacing on the surface.
S: Moderate to strong aromas of roasted whole coffee beans are present in the nose.
T: Like the smell, the taste is filled with flavors of roasted coffee beans but is also acidic and bitter.
M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a low to moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is incredibly easy to drink considering its strength because the alcohol is completely hidden from the taste.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2013 20:09:39 | More by metter98

rudzud

Massachusetts

4.24/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a bottle of this while up in VT with JLindros.

A -Poured into my Duvel tulip a dark brown nearly motor oil black with a quarter inch dark chocolate head that fades to leave thin clouding and a thin halo.

S - Big aromas of dark chocolate, light coffee, faint fudge, roasted malts, vanilla, and bourbon. Nose is very, very enticing!

T - OOohhh yah. Massive lingering fudge brownie finish that is cut in to wonderfully by bourbon. The start is bitter espresso beans and roasted malts that soon become intermingled by the dark, dark chocolate. Very nice barrel notes (vanilla, oak) in the middle lend ways to the fudge brownie and bourbon finish. Lovely.

M - Surprisingly thin here for the style, and the tingly carbonation doesn't help that thin feeling at all. A shame

O - Truly would have been a top tier stout if not for the poor mouthfeel. Very complex flavours here. Very well crafted stout courtesy of 8 wired.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2013 18:24:31 | More by rudzud

juanbon

Georgia

4.5/5  rDev +4.9%

03-07-2013 23:09:03 | More by juanbon

bsuedekum

Missouri

2.5/5  rDev -41.7%

03-02-2013 01:47:40 | More by bsuedekum

standardcherry

Massachusetts

4.48/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

500 ml bottle served into a snifter. Bottled January 2011.

A: Jet black, no light goes through it. Big mocha colored head at first but it dissipates in a minute.
S: Huuuge coffee, wood notes, chocolate, dark fruits.
T: Sweet fudge, vanilla, caramel notes. Lingering aftertaste of strong coffee bitterness.
M: Medium bodied, nice carbonation. A bit of an alcohol bite.
O: Spectacular beer. No idea how it's flown under the radar for so long. Seek this out.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2013 03:56:15 | More by standardcherry

sweemzander

Illinois

4/5  rDev -6.8%

01-23-2013 02:42:34 | More by sweemzander

pixieskid

France

4.45/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500ml bottle into my Mikkeller 0,4L wine tulip.

Pours a fairly deep black hue with a tan head, about an inch. Dissipates slowly leaving a nice ring of head as it drinks down.

Nose: espresso, fudge brownies, a bit of booze (cognac) and lingering vanilla bean notes.

Taste: sweet and salted caramel up front, suggestion of rich fudge/ brownies really hits you at first. Notes of dark chocolate, molasses, brown sugar and vanilla beans follow, leading into a strong espresso bitterness and touch of bourbon notes. God damn this thing complex.

Mouthfeel: surprisingly a tad thin but the alcohol presence is visible and seemingly thins out the body/mouthfeel.

Overall: decadent and complex but may still need a bit more age to mellow out the alcoholic bite that lingers on the palate...

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 23:54:56 | More by pixieskid

SDG1070

Ohio

4/5  rDev -6.8%

12-27-2012 00:31:05 | More by SDG1070

JMBSH

Colorado

4/5  rDev -6.8%

12-23-2012 23:16:37 | More by JMBSH

bradfordjohnson

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev -0.9%

12-18-2012 23:02:56 | More by bradfordjohnson

ortie

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev -0.9%

12-18-2012 18:19:00 | More by ortie

GregSVT

Texas

4/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

350ml bottle into a tulip

A: Pours dark brown with a small brown head that fades to a ring and leaves a little bit of lacing.

S: The nose is vanilla, cocoa, hops, and a bit of coffee.

T: The taste follows the nose with vanilla, chocolate, coffee, and citrus hops on the finish. Not a huge fan of the hops but the vanilla and other flavors are nice.

M: The feel is medium bodied with really nice carbonation.

O: This is a decent beer with good flavors and ok barrel character. I could use less hops and more barrel but if you like that sort of thing this is your beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2012 05:54:31 | More by GregSVT

xnicknj

Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

bottle poured into tulip

Pours an inky blackness with a crop of tanned dark head. Fades out completely with some bubbly film on the collar and some patches of lacing on the glass.

Fragrant roasted dark coffee beans with bourbon and oak. Vanilla and chocolate sweetness with dark malts. Warm and boozy.

Rich and sweet up front with cocoa and chocolate. Oaky bourbon with hints of vanilla and roasted malts. Dark and heavy, driven by sweeter malts and bread crust. Finishes boozy and sweet with chocolate and caramel.

Full body, decent carbonation, sticky and full on the tongue. It's not quite KBS but this really hit the spot. Plenty of bourbon barrel character with delicious coffee overtones.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2012 16:50:16 | More by xnicknj

tobelerone

New Jersey

4.33/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I’ve avoided buying anything from these guys due to the generally high price and apprehension about springing for hoppy beers that have flown across the world but when I saw this barrel aged stout for about 11 bucks I took a flyer on it and I’m really glad I did. Pours next-to-jet black with a light brown head that settles slowly; modest lacing clinging to the glass here and there.

The first thing that hits me in the aroma is prominent oak; slowly coffee, chocolate, roasted malt, burnt sugars, molasses, vanilla, anise, booze all emerge. Very nice nose, one that is surpassed in complexity and detail by the flavor. As this beer opens the oak, which at first struck me as overly assertive, recedes a bit, and the taste of fresh brewed espresso really comes to the fore. Has an almost spicy, smoky quality reminiscent of chilis but without mouth burning heat; good balance of roasted, charred character and sweetness, again, molasses, anise, vanilla and chocolate are all here. The sweetness of the beer lingers in the finish and there’s a touch of warming but the taste of booze is generally well hidden.

Medium-full body, pleasingly thick without being over-the-top chewy; smooth and creamy feel but still possessing some life in its carbonation. Highly recommended, this is full of deep flavor and lip-smacking heft.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2012 13:43:41 | More by tobelerone

ROBSTARR

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev -0.9%

11-21-2012 20:34:27 | More by ROBSTARR

laxer8811

New York

4.25/5  rDev -0.9%

11-18-2012 03:04:43 | More by laxer8811

CB_Crowe

Vermont

4.75/5  rDev +10.7%

11-07-2012 20:08:15 | More by CB_Crowe

duceswild

Maryland

4.5/5  rDev +4.9%

10-30-2012 21:42:31 | More by duceswild