Goose Island to bring back Big John and Night Stalker

Discussion in 'Beer Releases' started by WillCarrera, Oct 26, 2012.

  1. WillCarrera Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    josephwa and AndyAvalanche like this.
  2. MarcatGSB Member

    Location:
    Michigan
    Yep, got a sixth of each heading my way...
  3. DevilsCups Member

    Location:
    New York
    Beautiful! Both great beers.
    Thickfreakness likes this.
  4. ABisonEgo Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    yeah i heard from my beer buyer that night stalker would be back in 2 weeks the other day. i have a 02/19/10 release in my cellar now and a march 2011 release of big john in the cellar now. cant wait to add more of these!!!
    JCaweinstein and tjshippen like this.
  5. ControlledBurn Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    For those in the area there seemed to be plenty of vintage Big John and Night Stalker in the to-go fridge at GI Clybourne when I was there last weekend.
  6. vbiliyar Member

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    Aahhh fuck yeah. I loved the one Nightstalker I had a few years ago. Wonder if it will make it out to Boston, seeing as we haven't even seen BCBS yet...
  7. InVinoVeritas Member

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Have both Night Stalker & Big John in the cellar. I've tried NS, not BJ. However, was pretty unimpressed with NS. Hope it cellars better. Frankly as non apples to apples comparison, logistics, business standpoint, so on, I'd rather GI put their development energy elsewhere!
  8. AJacob81 Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    NS cellars very well, imho. We had a 2010 about a month ago, and 'twas deliciously smooth.
  9. RTrain12 Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    I'd buy Big John again!
    ABisonEgo likes this.
  10. cjacobsen Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Big John is/was awesome
    Bay01 and ABisonEgo like this.
  11. BrettHead Member

    Location:
    Nebraska
    NS is awesome fresh (so good that I have never aged it, lol). It has a super grapefruity nose etc. from the generous hopping :) Can't wait for NS to return!
    Tilley4 likes this.
  12. brewtechnik Member

    Location:
    New Hampshire
    Big John is basically unbourbon'd BCBS...;)
    menkros likes this.
  13. abecall98 Member

    Location:
    California
    My buddy has about 2 cases of Night Stalker at his place. I completely forgot it was kinda retired.
    mwrecording likes this.
  14. ABisonEgo Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    big john is bcbs base stout aged on cocao nibs. night stalker is the same base beer, just dry hopped. bcbs is the same base beer barrel aged. so yes, you are somewhat correct
    redblacks75 likes this.
  15. cmoody91 Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    What were prices like though? Always seem to be pretty steep for to-go beer..
  16. jmdrpi Member

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Hooray for more Night Stalker!
  17. BedetheVenerable Member

    Location:
    Missouri
    Ugh, I gotta say...I still stand morally opposed to a lot of what AB does....but damn...year round BCBS, the return of some other impressive beers, and another big barleywine in the making? I...want...to...stick...to...my...scruples.... :)

    Note: I do, on occassion, still buy GI products and generally love 'em...
  18. evilcatfish Member

    Location:
    Missouri
    Very nice! Big fan of those
  19. Bitterbill Member

    Location:
    Wyoming
    I've never had Big John but Nightstalker was killer good and it ages with the best of them.
    Etan likes this.
  20. boognish666 Member

    Location:
    Nebraska
    If I remember correctly they had 2010 NS and 2011 BJ and both were going for $20/bomber. They had a fairly decent vintage bottle list. No BCBS unfortunately but I wasn't really expecting it either.
  21. BigTomZ Member

    Location:
    Virginia
    Honestly I wasn't impressed by either of these beers. They were good beers but nothing great.
    Pahn and ShogoKawada like this.
  22. foobula Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Haven't tried either myself, but what I'm thinking is... they must have been retired for a good reason, right? Was that good reason so they could maximize BCS production? Or weren't they selling well?
  23. dvelcich Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    I believe it was to maximize BCBS production.

    I'm still waiting for my Bourbon County Brand Chocolate Stout (Big John was supposedly released in the first place because they didn't have enough bourbon barrels, but I got to try it at Sheffields, and it was my favorite variation there).
    pschul4 likes this.
  24. BigTomZ Member

    Location:
    Virginia
    Night Stalker sat on shelves collecting dust all year long in my area.

    Big John has only been released once before, so without a long track record I'd guess that was dropped to make room for other beers.
    VonZipper likes this.
  25. Thickfreakness Member

    Location:
    New York
    I loved them both on release. I have 2010 and 2011 Night Stalker and Big John cellaring. Never understood why these were discontinued. Glad to see them coming back!
  26. MCBrigno Member

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    I assumed they were discontinued so that GI could focus on upping the production of its core beers and also introducing new or returning beers again.
  27. dc55110 Member

    Location:
    Minnesota
    Batch #1 Nigh Stalker, right now, is one of the best non BA stouts around. Thick as molass; a small amount of the hop bitterness persists; a slightly sweet, but balanced by an equally robust amount of roast.
    Thickfreakness likes this.
  28. Pahn Member

    Location:
    New York
    nightstalker didn't sell very well. sat on shelves for years (still can find it in popular stores in NYC). big john took awhile to sell out but it's at least not easy to find anymore.

    both are good beers.
  29. AndyAvalanche Member

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    Score, maybe I'll drink the bottle of Big John I have now!
  30. dvelcich Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Just bought a 2012 Night Stalker, so if you're interested be on the lookout.
  31. IMSPEAKNOENGLISH Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    where at?
  32. dvelcich Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Sent you a BM.
  33. MarcatGSB Member

    Location:
    Michigan
    I agree man, once the Hop settled (which was great fresh), it really turned into one of the best Impy stouts I've ever had.
  34. freyguy10 Member

    Location:
    New York
    night stalker can stay retired but Big John was very underrated as a stout, very well done
    Jfriz25 likes this.
  35. stouts4me Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Nightstalker was at South Loop Binny's as of Black Friday, near the checkout lanes.
  36. Tilley4 Member

    Location:
    Tennessee
    Great news! Just in time for the TN release!
  37. mychalg9 Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Only had Nightstalker at a tasting and never had Big John so if anyone sees any in the NW burbs shoot me a BM
  38. Irishace9 Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Enjoying a Nightstalker with Sunday night football!
  39. Vega406 Member

    Location:
    Indiana
    Looking forward to finding some Nightstalker around!!
  40. JimmyGillingham Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    Picked up a Nightstalker this weekend. Need to crack it open and see what all the excitement is about.

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