Bourbon Barrel Aged Dark Lord Imperial Stout - Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub

CooperEllis

New York

4.03/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

From HayesEz.

Dark brown flat in the center, tan to the edges. No head.

Solid Aroma, easily the best part of this. Molasses, boooze, vanilla, brown sugar.

Taste is a bit thin. Vanilla extract, bourbon, malt. Notacibly different from the regular DL which I often find soy/burned/malt. This was solid, if unspectacular.

Not much to the body, a bit of a sticky mouthfeel, and still a bit thin. Odd, more bourbon than stout.

Really good, enjoyed it. The other people I split it with enjoyed it as well.

(184th)

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2012 20:34:36 | More by CooperEllis

Phelps

Arizona

3.88/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from the tap at Dark Lord Day, served in the brewpub inside a tiny snifter. This particular variant of Dark Lord spent time in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels.

Inky black with a teeny tiny head that fizzled away to nothingness. Very thin ring.

Sweet nose. Molasses, light coffee, dark cherry, vanilla, hints of oak. Sugared and syrupy.

Heavy bourbon at first, though the flavor lightens at the swallow. Lots of dark cherries, vanilla, brandy, molasses, hints of coffee, toffee and dark chocolate. Mostly the sweet stuff.

Medium, buttery body expands in the mouth. Oodles of alcohol on the tongue and in the nose. Heavy, syrupy, but not cloying. Fairly clean finish.

I’ve enjoyed the oak-aged Dark Lord in previous years, but this isn’t as smooth as I remember. I might actually prefer the un-aged version, and I definitely prefer the vanilla-aged version.

Serving type: on-tap

05-08-2011 23:45:12 | More by Phelps

HoboAGoGo

Indiana

3.85/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured into the lil' plastic cup, with a dark ass body, a nice thick head, and no chance of sun escaping from it. The nose was coffee rich, slight chocolate, but heavy on the bourbon. The tongue has everything you'd expect from a Dark Lord, smoother on the hop,but very rich chocolate, a nice roasted coffee flavor, but once again, a lot of bourbon. I had a bit of a difficulty drinking this one down, the alcohol burn was a bit much for me, I think the beer could do well just aging in a barrel as opposed to a bourbon barrel, that's my two cents though.

Serving type: on-tap

04-30-2006 00:18:42 | More by HoboAGoGo

pepsican

Iowa

3.85/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Thanks to joey and random guy in line for tastings of this. Black as night, no head. Aroma was heavy on the molasses and bourbon. Huge bourbon intro with chocolate, molasses, and alcohol. Finishes very boozy, syrupy. A bit over the top for me, not very drinkable. I had a 4 oz glass and it was a bit too much. Still one of the most flavorful and unique beers I've come across.

Serving type: on-tap

04-19-2010 22:14:03 | More by pepsican

SpeedwayJim

New York

3.8/5  rDev -17.2%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Thomas for this one. Side-by-side with all the other BA Dark Lords. Bottle 123/420 into a snifter. From notes.

Same appearance as the others.

Big bourbon notes on the nose. Very sweet. Some chocolate, dark fruit, fudge, and cocoa powder. Solid.

Sweet plum, prune, chocolate. Low booziness lingers in the background. Sweet soy sauce in the middle. Molasses, fudge in the finish. Some chocolate also. Fudge in the aftertaste. Really good. Not as bold as the Pappy version.

Same feel as the others. Oily, slick, viscous, slightly sticky aftertaste.

This isn't as impressive as the Pappy Dark Lord. However, there's more balance here and a touch more subtlety. A solid beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2012 00:49:36 | More by SpeedwayJim

tarheels86

California

3.73/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750mL red wax 2012 thanks to a generous BA. Pours tepid muddy brune with small beige bubbles. Nose is richer, thicker bourbon, rich hazelnut, amaretto, marzipan. Very nice aroma. Taste is sticky, big ass maple, spicier. Thick and rich. Not metallic or thin like other DL variants. I’ll probably never be a fan but this is the best variant I've had besides the Cognac De Muerte, which I surprisingly loved. 6/3/2012 8/3/7/4/15=3.7

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2012 17:31:37 | More by tarheels86

younger35

Minnesota

3.63/5  rDev -20.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Had this yesterday at Dark Lord Day '09. It was so nice to be able to get a glass of Oak Aged Dark Lord and Vanilla Bean Dark Lord, plop down on a couch and compare/review them. Great job by FFF this year. Drank from a classy plastic cup.

Appearance- Pours a jet black with a sort of soft, creamy dark tan head that sticks around for quite some time. A weak cap and thick collar remain the rest of the beer leaving a light bit of lacing (copied from the Vanilla Bean Dark Lord, they were exactly the same).
Smell- Loads of deeply roasted malts, a bit of sweet molasses and some very woody oak. The smell isn't necessarily harsh but the oak is fairly pungent. Some vanilla and milk chocolate along with some licorice and a touch of smoke. Some dark fruits as well but the oak really is fairly dominant.
Taste- I don't necessarily think that the barrel aging really helps Dark Lord (unlike the Vanilla Bean). I find it to be semi astringent with almost too much barrel. Plenty of vanilla still though and a bit of bitter roasted coffee. The sweetness seems to be quite a bit more advanced that the regular Dark Lord as well. Tons of bourbon soaked cherries, prunes, dates, figs and any other overly ripe dark fruit you can think of. Finishes with a touch of smoke and a bit of boozy oaky bourbon like quality.
Mouthfeel- Big and rich and creamy with a smooth silkiness and a bit of boozy astringency.
Drinkability- Uhh... Out of the three Dark Lords this one was by far my least favorite. Just not a big fan of the barrel aging which is weird because I usually enjoy the added complexity. Maybe I was just a bit spoiled by the Vanilla Bean? Either way glad I got to try it.

Serving type: on-tap

04-26-2009 21:02:20 | More by younger35

chaz01

Ohio

3.33/5  rDev -27.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Had a couple 3 oz servings at 2010 DLD in a plastic cup. Of the 3 variations of Dark Lord that I tried, this was my favorite.

A: Jet black oily in color with a thin brown head.

S: Bourbon and oak flavors dominate the aroma

T: More bourbon and oak in the taste, with notes of chocolate and alcohol.

M: Thick and syrupy mouthfeel with a dry cocoa finish. More alcohol flavors in the finish.

D: I realize drinkability and availability are different, but given the beer is only available 1 day a year for a 3 oz serving, I'm not sure how drinkable you can rate the beer. Saying that it pairs really well with my Italian Sub that I got standing in line doesn't quite sound right.

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2010 17:42:38 | More by chaz01

craytonic

District of Columbia

3.18/5  rDev -30.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Looks like DL, pitch black, oil slick, etc, etc

Smell: Only a hint of oak on the scent. Lots of roast malt and molasses.

Taste: Did they add sugar to this one as well? If so, why? Roast malt, molasses, brown sugar, milk chocolate, semi-sweet baking chocolate. The oak is huge on the taste, like a fresh oak barrel. Too much barrel actually. Much hasher than the regular DL or VB DL.

Mouthfeel: Great - thick, chewy, smooth, near perfect.

Drinkability: To much fresh, wet oak and I get some added sugar. Regular DL is better, but honestly none of the three is T-50 worthy in my opinion.

Serving type: growler

08-14-2009 02:28:37 | More by craytonic

drseamus

New York

3.13/5  rDev -31.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

On tap at DLD for 9 bucks a snifter. Pretty steep.

Dark black liquid with no head. Anyone who rates a beer like this as a 5 in appearance is an idiot. The smell is potent booze. If you close your eyes you might think you're smelling a glass of bourbon. Not a plus for a beer. The bourbon should complement but not dominate. The flavor is all booze and caramel. It's almost like the beer itself is completely gone. They could have just barrel aged miller light and with this level of alcohol it would taste the same. Not worth the wait or the price.

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2011 17:16:09 | More by drseamus

Cedromar

Massachusetts

2.7/5  rDev -41.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

So...yeah, I had one full glass of OA Dark Lord an hour ago. It's was horrendous. I got my toes crushed by the keg and then when I tasted it after waiting a couple hours for it, it just was a huge let down.

Looked pretty good, the smell was average of average DL, no Vanilla or Oak in the scent.

Taste- Wow, this sucks. I'm sorry, normal '09 DL = OMG. '09 OA DL=bad. No taste of Oak at all and overpoweringly sweet. The few drops I had of Kaggen and Surly Two beat the shit out of this brew.

Mouthfeel- Good, just like normal DL, thick and delicious.

Drinkability- It tasted awful, somewhat like '08 Darkness awful. I can see if people like it, but it had no taste of Oak at all. NONE. No wood. Vanilla bean DL was AMAZING though.

Serving type: on-tap

04-25-2009 21:10:43 | More by Cedromar