Bottle - thanks Jake - Pours black tan head - nose/taste of heavy cinnamon, vanilla, hot chili pepper with good heat, roast chocolate, oak and bourbon - medium body.

12oz bottle pours a thick, murky black with some cloudy, tan head. Nose has a lot of cinnamon, vanilla, brown sugar, heavy licorice, black peppercorns, raisins, lightly cakey. Flavor follows right along, mild chocolate, molasses, licorice, some booze, vanilla, lots of cinnamon, black pepper, raisin, some cola. The pepper heat is on the end. This probably aged a bit too long.

Bottle - Spice and dark chocolate, smells great. Jet black brown with a nice brown head. Cocoa and chilli, some sweetness and a chilli heat finish. Nice sweet, heat and cocoa.

Bottle thanks to Russell. Pours a very dark brown with small beige head that lasts. The aroma is roast, cocoa, chocolate. Thin mouth, strong roast, wood, vanilla, dark chocolate, sweet, very nice.

Bottled 10/22/14, drunk 3/22/15. Dark ebony with garnet and molasses tints on the edges. Not opaque, though some sediment is left in the bottle. A tan head can be coaxed with a vigorous pour and it is somewhat lasting, though eventually recedes to a ring on the edge. First impression of the nose is a peppered stick of beef jerky! Hmmm, not exactly unpleasant, with some chili notes and light soy intertwined intriguingly. Vanilla and just the faintest touch of char gracefully emerge, giving it a sweet, malty aroma, as the chili dryness fades with breathing/warming. By the end of the glass, there is a complete lack of fusel or any other unpleasant vapor and instead just delicious chocolate, vanilla and chili. Though its not noted on the label, the vanilla seems bean-like and not barrel-like, and I’d be hard-pressed to guess this was bourbon-aged. Aroma strength is moderate, but again, just so thrilled it’s not a nose full of coconut, bourbon and alcohol. Can’t complain flavor-wise either. Holy crap, is this a bourbon barrel kitchen sink imperial that I actually enjoy??? Yes. Yes, I believe it is. Delicious use of the habanero to balance the malt and while, as always, that takes away from the beer character, I think there’s still enough char, chocolate and caramel on the finish to still give you some bang for your buck (man, my ratings are getting so cheesy). Body is medium for an imperial, and while some may fault that, I welcome the drinkability and relative dryness this beer brings. Cinnamon/nutmeg/coffee are all present but manageable and balanced. Again, you have to like chili beers to like this, but if you do, I don’t see what more you could ask for. Cheers to Odd Side for not overdoing a beer that has ALOT of potential to overdo. Really enjoyable and I’m sorry I’ll have to wait til next time in Michigan to try more of their beers.

The beer is black, not even brown at the edges. The head is smallish and light brown. The aroma is chocolate, vanilla, pepper, cinnamon and mild roast. Not much oak or other bourbon flavor. Taste is medium sweet, medium spicy from the pepper. Lots of chocolate and a good bit of spice. Some caramel, little to no oak. There’s a little creaminess to the beer but it’s fairly thin. Nice enough flavor but fairly thin.

Poured from a 12 oz bottle dated 10/22/2014. Aroma is rather adjunct forward with quite a bit of cinnamon and pepper. Moderate chocolate notes with some light roast and green peppers. Coffee aroma is light. Light alcohol spice. Pours black with a moderately sized, slightly thin, dark tan/light mocha head. Light lacing and moderate legs. Flavor is slightly to moderately sweet with quite a bit of chocolate. Light coffee notes with some medium light cinnamon. Some peppery spice in the finish. Light alcohol spice and quite a bit of chocolate in the finish. Mouthfeel is medium to medium full bodied with medium carbonation. Low astringency and low to medium low alcohol warmth. Moderate silky, creaminess but finish is a bit thin. Overall, better than I was expecting but the coffee seems to be an afterthought and the bourbon is very faint. Mostly just pepper, cinnamon and a lot of chocolate.