Alesmith: Barrel Aged Speedway Stout 2023 (Bourbon Barrel)(USA: Imperial Stout: 13.3% ABV)
Visual: Black. Still. Thin brown dash of a head.
Nose: Dry roasted peanuts. Crushed honey nut cornflakes. Bourbon. Subtle bitter coffee. Resin chocolate chews. Rich chocolate drinks.
Body: Alcohol tingle. Fudge. Bitter cocoa. Chocolate fondue. Slightly drying. Slight neutral alcohol character. Black cherry.
Finish: Crushed bourbon biscuits. Drying neutral alcohol. Bitter cocoa. Some sour cream.
Conclusion: Ok, I have had mixed experiences with the much respected Speedway Stout. Not bad, like I do enjoy it, but not as much as most people seem to. I found the way it leans heavily into the bitter flavours without much contrast kept it out of the top range of the imperial stouts for me, even though I can still appreciate it.
So, now we have a version with bourbon barrel ageing, a technique famous for smoothing and adding sweet notes to a beer when used right. Does this now make it must have beer for me?
It is mixed, again. Definitely has some added sweet fudge and vanilla notes, while still keeping that dry bitter core, a good balance and definitely improves the beer in that aspect. However in exchange it feels like the alcohol is much more present, and not in a fun, boozy way – that warming and robust style – instead it is a drying kind of neutral alcohol character that haunts the beer in its weaker moments.
It reminds me of Surly Darkness, in that case I preferred the unaged version of the barrel aged version due to a similar, though not identical change brought in from the barrel aging that made it more alcohol touched. However in that case I definitely preferred the unaged version, here I am mixed, there is definitely advantages and flaws coming from the barrel aging. The comparison continues as the beer warms, as it does the bourbon becomes more and more evident, hiding elements of the base beer in a similar way to what I saw with Surly Darkness.
This is good beer, but that dry alcohol is far too present for me to recommend it, let alone list it as one of the best imperial stouts. It is both fine, and disappointment considering its reputation.
Background: Ok, I saw this at the EU based Beer Republic – unfortunately post from them is painfully expensive so I had to keep to a very small order, but this, one of ratebeers top 50 beers in the world, leapt out at me as one I must grab. Yeah I know ratebeers stuff is very biased towards big imperial stouts and sours but still tend to be worth a grab. I had Speedway Stout – a big imperial stout made with coffee – many a year ago, and at the time had tried I think 20 of the top 50, with trying more beers and things dropping in and out of the list I think I am currently on 18 or so, so not bad. I had my issues with speedway stout as mentioned in the notes, but I figured the sweetness usually added by barrel aging may make the needed difference to turn it into one I could adore. Having recently seen Green Day Live when they played the entirety of Dookie live I had a renewed appreciation for that album so put it on as backing music.
