Goose Island's Bourbon County Brand Stout

There a quite a few beers with some serious notoriety in the craft beer world, and Goose Island's BCBS is one of the biggest. I managed to snatch this up for the first time this year at the Navy Exchange long after other stores had sold their stock. I was excited because I was pretty bummed about missing the release. I cracked one open that very evening to see what all the hype was about.

Bourbon County Brand Stout pours dark as night with a dark mocha head that didn't stick around. The nose on this is big and boozy, with lots of bourbon and a slight hint of chocolate trying (and failing) to fight through. With that nose, I expected a complete booze bomb. I couldn't have been more wrong. Though not usually incredibly important to me, the first thing I noticed when I took my first sip was the mouth feel. This stuff is smooth, silky goodness, and is just an absolute joy to drink before the flavor even hits you. Forward flavors consist of some roasted malts and just a hint of chocolate. Big, and I do me BIG, bourbon flavor follows up, with a bite of alcohol that does not at all fit the ABV (14.9%!). I find that when drinking these bigger, boozier beers, a mark of a good brew is how enjoyable it remains while slow sipping over an hour or more. I drank this one through the entirety of Olympus Has Fallen (A movie that couldn't have more holes in its plot if Shia LaBeouf was digging them) and I enjoyed the last sip as much as the first. Just a great offering from Goose Island, and I absolutely cannot wait to try the three variants I got (Proprietors, Barley Wine, and Coffee).