2024 bottle drunk 2/28/26.
Hoping Bytemesis' remark of still a bit too "adjuncty" is ameliorated by the extra year the bottle has had since he had it, though initially a bit worried. That's still quite a bit of vanilla (though it's hard to be mad, I particularly love vanilla). Past that, there's a tasteful amount of cocoa nibs and lighter coconut with fudgey malts and mild whiskey character (that I wouldn't mind be a bit stronger, given how much adjunct they've added). No alcohol noted, fortunately, nor does it smell overly sweet.
Big vanilla in the flavor, initially, but it softens somewhat as spicy bourbon and chocolatey cacao enter the mix, as well. Tame maltiness is barely even chewy, showing a fudgey flavor that dries out heavily on the finish leaving the impression of only a medium body.
Look, I love vanilla as much as the next guy...Side Project is probably my 3rd favorite brewery in the world and they are obsessed with vanilla; but the difference is that their vanilla bombs are also chalk full of chewy, fat malts and big barrel character. This is just a vanilla bomb without those requisite balancing characteristics. That said, the vanilla is still lovely and the beer perfectly flavorful and drinkable; just not really top tier stuff, imho.