Vanishing Point 01

Dark brown. This has a lot of sweetness, with a hint of bourbon character. Certainly thin. The bourbon sweetness isn't bad but I have to say, this needs a lot more body - the flavours are fine but you need a little more oomph to make this work.

500 ml bottle. Pours black with a moderate light tan head. Aromas of powdery dark chocolate, vanilla, and burnt malts. Flavors of rich cocoa, creamy vanilla, and lots of roasted malts. Noticeable alcohol.

500 ml bottle into snifter, bottled on 7/26/2017. Pours clear nearly opaque dark brown/black color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and fluffy khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of chocolate, cocoa, caramel, coffee, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, and dark/brown bread; with lighter notes of coconut, nuttiness, smoke, raisin, plum, licorice, molasses, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malt, bourbon barrel, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with solid strength. Taste of big chocolate, cocoa, caramel, coffee, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, and dark/brown bread; with lighter notes of coconut, nuttiness, smoke, raisin, plum, licorice, molasses, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Light herbal/roast bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of chocolate, cocoa, caramel, coffee, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, toasted oak, dark/brown bread, nuttiness, light smoke/dark fruit, and roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, bourbon barrel, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a great roasted bitter/sweet balance, and zero cloying/acrid flavors after the finish. Slight dryness from roast bitterness and oak spiciness. Medium carbonation and medium-full body; with a very smooth, creamy/bready, fairly silky, and lightly sticky/chalky/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is very well hidden; a very mild warmth, with zero barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is a great barrel aged imperial stout. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, bourbon barrel, and light fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV. Despite the weak aromas; with flavors were very rich, and basically made up for them. Very well balanced and complex dark/roast/bready English malts and bourbon barrel flavors; with nice mild complementing English fruity yeast in the background. A very enjoyable offering, and well made style example.