Dark Ray
Firestone Walker Brewing in Paso Robles, California, United States 🇺🇸
Stout - Pastry / Flavoured - Imperial Special Out of Production|
Score
7.93
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-BREWMASTER'S COLLECTIVE EXCLUSIVE- “This is the very first Brewmaster's Reserve beer and something I’ve been thinking about blending for some time. We selected barrels of one-year-aged Parabola and two-year-aged Velvet Merkin, then added locally sourced Madagascar Vanilla beans, cocoa nibs, and coconut. In the end, we created a 'liquid Mounds bar' – the closest thing to a pastry stout Firestone Walker has made." -Brewmaster Matt Brynildson
Released as part of the Brewmaster's Collective Welcome Pack.
Released as part of the Brewmaster's Collective Welcome Pack.
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8.3/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8.5
Texture 9
Overall 8
Bottle @ Hotel During MBCC 2026. Sourced from Kihoskh. Thanks Delaney. Pours Black with a small head. Massive Wood, roast, vanilla and coffee. Full bodied. Tasty.
Tried
on 30 May 2026
at 06:04
9.3/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 9
Flavor 9
Texture 10
Overall 9
Bottle from Tavour
Appearance: dark brown with a tan head
Aroma: vanilla, chocolate, coconut, roasty, bourbon, woody
Flavor: medium sweetness, medium bitterness
Texture: light carbonation, creamy feel, full body, long finish
Tasty
Appearance: dark brown with a tan head
Aroma: vanilla, chocolate, coconut, roasty, bourbon, woody
Flavor: medium sweetness, medium bitterness
Texture: light carbonation, creamy feel, full body, long finish
Tasty
Tried
from Bottle
from Tavour
on 07 Feb 2026
at 16:59
8.4/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8.5
Flavor 8.5
Texture 9
Overall 8
2021 bottle, drunk 1/19/26, as pictured.
Yeah that's a candy bar, but yet it's not too sugary and there's still robust, apparent bourbon/barrel character that further helps balance the adjunct. Not like they added anything bad to this; the adjuncts are all respectable and shouldn't create any big sugary character, though they could have been overdone. Not at this point, almost 5 years on. Very even, soft, luscious and showing no alcohol or signs of oxidation. Incredibly compelling/inviting.
Rich and malty with little sign of its age. Spicy bourbon and/or rye barrel is still prevalent, while the adjuncts are mostly all apparent, though not dominant. Seems like fresh this would have been a bit of a mess, and probably syrupy, close to too sweet and very adjunct-forward, if not over-barreled. Well, thank god they set some aside and offered it cheaply on tavour, because it's absolutely sublime at this point. Rich and intensely-flavored, with a chewy, but not syrupy texture. Balanced barrel and adjunct with no alcohol.
Yeah that's a candy bar, but yet it's not too sugary and there's still robust, apparent bourbon/barrel character that further helps balance the adjunct. Not like they added anything bad to this; the adjuncts are all respectable and shouldn't create any big sugary character, though they could have been overdone. Not at this point, almost 5 years on. Very even, soft, luscious and showing no alcohol or signs of oxidation. Incredibly compelling/inviting.
Rich and malty with little sign of its age. Spicy bourbon and/or rye barrel is still prevalent, while the adjuncts are mostly all apparent, though not dominant. Seems like fresh this would have been a bit of a mess, and probably syrupy, close to too sweet and very adjunct-forward, if not over-barreled. Well, thank god they set some aside and offered it cheaply on tavour, because it's absolutely sublime at this point. Rich and intensely-flavored, with a chewy, but not syrupy texture. Balanced barrel and adjunct with no alcohol.
Tried
from Bottle
from Tavour
on 19 Jan 2026
at 21:35
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7.5
Texture 7
Overall 7.5
12oz @ 🏡 shared with Phill.
Aroma: sweet, roasty, coconut and vanilla, a bit spicy.
Taste: along the same lines, a bit unbalanced to me in terms of connection of sweetness and bitterness.
Overall: decent, but not good enough for my taste anymore.
Aroma: sweet, roasty, coconut and vanilla, a bit spicy.
Taste: along the same lines, a bit unbalanced to me in terms of connection of sweetness and bitterness.
Overall: decent, but not good enough for my taste anymore.
Tried
from Bottle
on 09 Jan 2026
at 06:29
10/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 04 Oct 2025
at 22:34
7.4/10
—
Appearance 7
Aroma 7.5
Flavor 7.5
Texture 7
Overall 7.5
aroma has lots of chocolate, cocoa, some sweet caramel, some toffee, some sweet malts.
flavor is malts, dried dark fruits, toffee, faint salty note, raisins, slightly roasted malts, toasted malts, malty bitterness into the end. quite complex barley wine style strong ale - the adjuncts work well, does not come off as artificial.
flavor is malts, dried dark fruits, toffee, faint salty note, raisins, slightly roasted malts, toasted malts, malty bitterness into the end. quite complex barley wine style strong ale - the adjuncts work well, does not come off as artificial.
Tried
from Bottle
from
Kihoskh
on 05 Aug 2025
at 23:54
8.8/10
Chocolate, coconut and vanilla
Tried
from Bottle
on 22 May 2025
at 20:10
8/10
Intense sweet and toasted malty with notes of dark dried fruit, caramel and toffee sweetness, medium body, vanilla and bourbon into the warming sweet malty close. Beautiful.
Tried
from Draft
on 26 Mar 2025
at 06:40
6.8/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
[10/22/2021] Sample at Mikkeller Beer Celebration Copenhagen 2021. Yellow session. Very dark brown to black. Black, caramel, nuts, chocolate, sweet.
Tried
on 12 Nov 2021
at 11:10
8.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Tap@MBCC Yellow session - dark brown with a beige head. Intense sweet and toasted malty with notes of dark dried fruit, caramel and toffee sweetness, medium body, vanilla and bourbon into the warming sweet malty close. Beautiful.
Tried
from Draft
on 29 Oct 2021
at 07:28