Howler style.

Black pour, 1" head of tan foam, very good lacing.

Dark, bitter, chocolate and roasted malt in the smell. It *almost* has an oat note or maybe it does. It’s faint.

Dark chocolate in the taste, not overly bitter, nice roasted malt flavour, light sweetness, pretty basic but delicious.

Medium bodied, same for the carbonation.

An all around well brewed Imperial Stout. No barreling required for my enjoyment. --- Beer merged from original tick of Ivan The Terrible Imperial Stout on 20 Jan 2013 at 07:00 - Score: 9 --- Beer merged from original tick of Ivan the Terrible Imperial Stout - Bourbon Barrel on 08 Dec 2018 at 20:24 - Score: Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8.5. Original review text: On draught at Frontier Brewing and Taproom.

Pours pitch black with a small head of foam that shrinks quickly but leaves a fine layer. Lacing is good.

Bourbon is up front and in your face. Gives a boozy and also fruitiness to the nose. This fresh, the base beer is hard to pull out.

The taste does let the Stout reveal the roasted malt. Bourbon isn't lost in any shuffle. It's there big time. Notes of vanilla and a bit of anise follow.

The body is a bit thin for the style but not too objectionable.

Pleasant drinking experience here.

Soil, chocolate, almond, coffee, charred oak nose. Black, firm medium beige head, some lacing. Coffee, tobacco, prune flavor. Charred oak finish. Medium body, soft carbonation, smooth. Superb balance, wonderful depth and intensity of flavor, very drinkable. Pretty damned awesome. Thanks boisebeerguy!

12 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled on 9/25/2014. Pours pitch black color with a 1 finger dense dark tan head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, toast, brown sugar, raisin, prune, licorice, dark bread, light char, herbal, and roasted earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/roasted malt, fruity yeast ester, and light-moderate earthy hop notes; with good strength. Taste of big dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, toast, dark bread, brown sugar, light dark fruit, light licorice, light char, herbal, and roasted earthiness. Moderate amount of roast/earthy hop bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, toast, dark bread, brown sugar, light dark fruit, light char, and roasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt, earthy hops, and light fruity yeast ester flavors; with a nice roasted bitterness/sweetness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a very smooth, moderately creamy, and lightly bready/chalky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is well hidden with only a light warming present after the finish. Overall this is a damn nice imperial stout. All around great complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt, earthy hops, and light fruity yeast ester flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the ABV. A very enjoyable offering. --- Beer merged from original tick of Ivan the Terrible Imperial Stout - Bourbon Barrel on 31 May 2019 at 20:48 - Score: Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5. Original review text: 8500th review! 750 ml bottle into snifter, 2015 vintage. Bottle #2566/3000. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and rocky khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice dense foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, oak char, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, pine, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness. Slight booze in the aromas as it warms, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/black/roast/bready malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, oak char, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, and dark bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, licorice, raisin, prune, cherry, fig, date, smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, pine, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate pine, herbal, grassy, peppery, roast, charred bitterness; and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, oak char, roasted nuts, toasted biscuit, dark bread/crust, molasses, licorice, dark fruit, smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, pine, and yeast/roast/toast/oak earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a great roast/hop bitter/sweet and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering hop/char bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness. Medium carbonation and medium-full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and fairly sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is great. Mild increasing warmth of 11.9%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic barrel aged Russian imperial stout. All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV, with the mellowly bitter/tannic/drying finish. Fantastic balance between rich malt complexity and bourbon barrel presence/integration; with balancing earthy hops and restrained fruity yeast. Light residual sweetness with lingering bitter/tannic dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and spot on style example. A lot more charred/tannic barrel presence than I expected, but it doesn't get overly boozy/drying.

Purchased at Bottles and Cans in Chicago, IL; enjoyed at home on a rainy day starting the short Thanksgiving week. Appearance is a thick pitch black with a thin off white head. Aroma is rich in dark chocolate and licorice, along with a potent backing. Taste has a light burn, notes of lactose, licorice, espresso, chocolate. It’s good stuff, nothing mind blowing, but solid.