Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Cocoa Porter
Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. in Lexington, Kentucky, United States 🇺🇸
Porter - Imperial Regular|
Score
6.87
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Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Cocoa Porter is brewed with five types of malts and cocoa nibs to build out a rich full body Porter with notes of bittersweet chocolate, oak, vanilla, and sweet toffee. 100% barrel-aged in freshly decanted Kentucky Bourbon Barrels.
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7.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
This review was imported from my RateBeer ratings.
12 oz. bottle, 8.0% ABV, I scoured the bottle and the carton and could find no date of any kind (Born on, Best by, etc.).
AROMA: I kid you not, I popped the top off and was immediately met with strong scents of bourbon and chocolate, and I hadn't even poured it in the glass yet! Once in the glass the predominant scent was overwhelmingly that of sweet milk-chocolate. However, every now and then I would get a hint of bourbon. But I would really have to search for it. All-in-all, it's a pretty delicious smelling beer.
APPEARANCE: Pours an opaque black with an almost non-existent, dark-tan head, that dissipates almost as fast you can pour the beer into the glass. I literally poured the beer into the glass, set the empty bottle down, and the head was already completely gone. There was zero lacing, too. But that's to be expected given that the head never grew more than a couple of millimeters high.
TASTE: Sweet with lots of chocolate flavor at the very beginning. Which then gives way to some mild bourbon and vanilla flavors. During the finish, there are hints of milk/cream and cocoa nib and maybe a wisp of bourbon.
MOUTHFEEL: Full-bodied with a smooth texture and average carbonation. It feels nice in the mouth but I think if they reduced the carbonation just a little, then it would add some silkiness to the texture. Which, I think, would pair better with the sweet, chocolatey flavor profile.
OVERALL: The high levels of sweet flavorings (chocolate, vanilla, and cream) drown out any "beer" flavors of the base Porter. Basically, if someone blindfolded you and gave this to you, you would not be able to tell that it was beer. You might be able to tell that it had alcohol in it, but that's about it. Is that a bad thing? If you are a beer lover, then it would probably rub you the wrong way, a bit (at least on principle). If you simply love delicious tasting drinks, then you would guzzle this down and immediately ask for another (although at 8% ABV, I would recommend pacing yourself). For me, I'm a beer lover (especially Porters), so this one poses a bit of a dilemma. I hate that I can't really detect that it's a Porter (or any other kind of beer), yet I'm delighted by the flavor. In the end, I'm no beer snob, so flavor will always win out in my book. It's a delicious drink, just don't expect "beer".
12 oz. bottle, 8.0% ABV, I scoured the bottle and the carton and could find no date of any kind (Born on, Best by, etc.).
AROMA: I kid you not, I popped the top off and was immediately met with strong scents of bourbon and chocolate, and I hadn't even poured it in the glass yet! Once in the glass the predominant scent was overwhelmingly that of sweet milk-chocolate. However, every now and then I would get a hint of bourbon. But I would really have to search for it. All-in-all, it's a pretty delicious smelling beer.
APPEARANCE: Pours an opaque black with an almost non-existent, dark-tan head, that dissipates almost as fast you can pour the beer into the glass. I literally poured the beer into the glass, set the empty bottle down, and the head was already completely gone. There was zero lacing, too. But that's to be expected given that the head never grew more than a couple of millimeters high.
TASTE: Sweet with lots of chocolate flavor at the very beginning. Which then gives way to some mild bourbon and vanilla flavors. During the finish, there are hints of milk/cream and cocoa nib and maybe a wisp of bourbon.
MOUTHFEEL: Full-bodied with a smooth texture and average carbonation. It feels nice in the mouth but I think if they reduced the carbonation just a little, then it would add some silkiness to the texture. Which, I think, would pair better with the sweet, chocolatey flavor profile.
OVERALL: The high levels of sweet flavorings (chocolate, vanilla, and cream) drown out any "beer" flavors of the base Porter. Basically, if someone blindfolded you and gave this to you, you would not be able to tell that it was beer. You might be able to tell that it had alcohol in it, but that's about it. Is that a bad thing? If you are a beer lover, then it would probably rub you the wrong way, a bit (at least on principle). If you simply love delicious tasting drinks, then you would guzzle this down and immediately ask for another (although at 8% ABV, I would recommend pacing yourself). For me, I'm a beer lover (especially Porters), so this one poses a bit of a dilemma. I hate that I can't really detect that it's a Porter (or any other kind of beer), yet I'm delighted by the flavor. In the end, I'm no beer snob, so flavor will always win out in my book. It's a delicious drink, just don't expect "beer".
Tried
from Bottle
on 01 Dec 2023
at 19:25