2015 Bourbon County releases

[RedCoffee]

So for those who have had a few of the variants what's the verdict this year? Only gotten the regular here but I think it's the best year fresh that I've had yet.

Heard Barleywine is disappointing?
How's the coffee?
Regal/Prop worth the price of admission?

Skip em all. Get a sip of rare from someone just to say you did it. Acquire moar regular.

 

[CornAndBeer]

BW is definitely "off"

Heard some vegatal complaints on coffee but haven't had it yet myself

 

[Gonzoillini1]

I'm usually not a fan of Barleywine, but I thought this years blend has been fantastic on every draft / bottle pour I've tried so far.

Coffee has been a weird one for me as some pours I get a vegetal green pepper / oxidized coffee thing and others taste / smell great.

Prop is divisive, and I think it is one of the largest variances in keg pours I've ever seen (think that 2nd batch of Hunahpu where some bottles were insanely pepper forward / cinnamon forward / vanilla forward / etc...)

Regal has been really impressive to me all the time, but I think some folks are missing the jammy character found in Bramble / Backyard.

Rare is really good, but the price of admission is high.

Regular is my favorite since 2011 out of the gate.

 

[PHBoiler]

So for those who have had a few of the variants what's the verdict this year? Only gotten the regular here but I think it's the best year fresh that I've had yet.

Heard Barleywine is disappointing?
How's the coffee?
Regal/Prop worth the price of admission?

Edit: FWIW Coffee is typically my favorite and I loved Backyard.

I agree with your thoughts on regular out of the bottle I had. Loads of richness. Vanilla, bourbon, oak, and a hint of smoke.

Barleywine on draft for me was a little thinner than the previous two years. It had some nice toffee notes, but it wasn't bourbon caramel like 2014 or 2013 in the head to head. 2014 specifically was much richer side by side.

I haven't had a bottle yet of coffee but on draft it had a very nice medium roast nose and the coffee blended really well into the base stout. It's different than previous years as I think it is more integrated into the base beer where 2013 was basically espresso with BCBS in the background. Although 2013 is still my favorite because I'm one of those that prefers adjuncts to smack me in the face if I'm buying it for the adjuncts.

Regal rye was more cocktail than variant as someone on here said last week. The juice really thinned it out for me. There was a wine-like quality to the fruit character rather than a jamminess. A hint of the tart cherry was interesting and a big sea salt finish. I only got 1 bottle and I'm fine with that. I'll revisit in 6-12 months and see if it hits my palate better than the draft pour I had.

I loved Prop but again I'm one that wants the adjunct to hit me in the mouth. Huge maple. That makes it too sweet for some, and that's fair. That said, I think it's a bottle you split 3-4 ways and you're satisfied. The toasted pecan finish might be my favorite part. I thought the pepper heat really just meshed with the rye notes I was getting. Very subdued. That's a draft pour though, so bottle variation is a real thing.

I thought Rare was phenomenal. Boozy and fudgy. I'd try to get more if not for the price tag. It has a lot of oak, hints of tannins, but the body and finish are fudge to me. Pretty bourbon forward nose and entrance. I've got one to drink in 9-12 months and the last one in 12-24 months. I don't care to see it get older than that as I already enjoy it now.

 

[furley]

BW is definitely "off"

Heard some vegatal complaints on coffee but haven't had it yet myself

drank the one i got. thought it was very good.

no "vegetal" off taste at all

 

[StarRaptor1]

I'm still surprised they didn't do their "Winter's Bourbon Cask" variant, that was their flagship bourbon stout just a few years ago... Maybe they are working on it for next year's Prop

 

[Hookemhops13]

Hmm as someone who loved the the wonderfully jammy Backyard, I think Regal kind of sucks... guy beside me who didn't like Backyard loved Regal so there's that. Give me regular or slap me with that adjunct dick. In between is just a let down..

Perfectly ok that I struck out on Regal.

 

[stupac2]

I was not a fan of Barleywine this year, I guess it's fine then that none came to my area. Coffee was just okay, I'd rather drink Coffee Eclipse this year and they're probably about the same price/ounce now. Regular at least is on point.

 

[JulianB1]

BCBS: the Infection Saga has been most entertaining.

 

[boogercrack]

BCBS: the Infection Saga has been most entertaining.

Go on....

 

[Hookemhops13]

BCBS: the Infection Saga has been most entertaining.

Ya saw someone else say something about it. Source?

 

[RedCoffee]

Rumor is that Coffee BCBS is infected, getting nasty, whatever.

I'm not sure if it's a real problem or if this is just the latest version of "the gold caps are Pappy barrel aged."

 

[JulianB1]

Go on....

Ya saw someone else say something about it. Source?

This:

Rumor is that Coffee BCBS is infected, getting nasty, whatever.

I'm not sure if it's a real problem or if this is just the latest version of "the gold caps are Pappy barrel aged."

Also there's some massive effort to track "batch numbers" of good and bad ones, which as far as I can tell is the timestamp from the bottling line and has nothing to do with a "batch" or anything like that.

Rumors of bad/infected bottles of barleywine are swirling around now as well.

 

[boogercrack]

This:



Also there's some massive effort to track "batch numbers" of good and bad ones, which as far as I can tell is the timestamp from the bottling line and has nothing to do with a "batch" or anything like that.

Rumors of bad/infected bottles of barleywine are swirling around now as well.

Where is all this massive effort and rumor milling occurring?

 

[JulianB1]

Where is all this massive effort and rumor milling occurring?

Seen it pretty much everywhere: FIB thread here, BA, every high-volume FB group, Reddit, even on Twitter where Goose Island has actually been responding to people (apparently they are "looking into it"). Since I don't have any bottles or any interest in acquiring anything beyond regular (which no one has reported problems with), I've only followed it passively. There's also some rumor out there that GI is offering refunds on bad bottles but I have no idea if that's true or not.

As far as tracking it, someone created a Google Docs spreadsheet (I don't have the link off-hand but it's probably not too hard to find).

 

[lb304854]

Seen it pretty much everywhere: FIB thread here, BA, every high-volume FB group, Reddit, even on Twitter where Goose Island has actually been responding to people (apparently they are "looking into it"). Since I don't have any bottles or any interest in acquiring anything beyond regular (which no one has reported problems with), I've only followed it passively. There's also some rumor out there that GI is offering refunds on bad bottles but I have no idea if that's true or not.

As far as tracking it, someone created a Google Docs spreadsheet (I don't have the link off-hand but it's probably not too hard to find).

GI has a lab on hand to handle these sorts of things.

And while many reports sound like an infection there are others that are full blown idiots. Green pepper is not an infection.

 

[JulianB1]

GI has a lab on hand to handle these sorts of things.

And while many reports sound like an infection there are others that are full blown idiots. Green pepper is not an infection.

Oh for sure, there's so many dipshits out there that have no idea how to even evaluate their own palates. They are constantly looking to be told if they should be enjoying something or how it should be tasting.

On the flip side are sisseronies providing detailed tasting notes for barrel-aged maple syrup sample pours.

 

[SSTroller]

On the flip side are sisseronies providing detailed tasting notes for barrel-aged maple syrup sample pours.

Are you some kind of noob who can't taste the terroir in different regional maple syrups or something?




In all seriousness, my one and only BCBCS I had was opened this past Monday. It did have a suspect amount of carb when poured. More so than any other BCBC I've ever opened.
Cold, it did have a slight tartness I chalked up to the coffee but once it warmed, it was miles better than the pour I had at FOBAB. That had way too much green pepper for a "fresh" coffee beer.
Soooooo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

 

[gtx281]

I opened two Coffees in the last two days. Both were fine.

The FOBAB pours were absolute coffee bombs, which I enjoyed a lot. The bottles were definitely less potent, but still solid.

 

[liquiddegenerate]

I blame the new fancy pants bottles for all the infected Bourbon County beers

 

[JulianB1]

I blame the new fancy pants bottles for all the infected Bourbon County beers

Joke aside, if there are these fairly random infections it's possible that the problem is somewhere in the bottling line. The Rare DOS 16oz swingtops come to mind, where some were infected and others were perfect. Completely different system of course so could be totally off-base.

 

[bauermj]

Opened one last night & delicious as usual (bcbcs '15)

 

[Gonzoillini1]

Well I just cracked a BCS barleywine and shared with the LT, and while it wasn't a gusher / massively infected, there sure is something going on with it. Totally different beer than the one I really enjoyed just a month or so ago.

 

[boogercrack]

oh man rumors of a 2015 rare infection would be schadenfreude overload

boogercrack,Sep 28, 2015

Not rare, but this coffee thing got me lol'n

 

[RyanG1]

Opened my Rare last night, the box is infected with termites.

 

[boogercrack]

The boxes do smell terrible though.

 

[RyanG1]

The boxes do smell terrible though.

 

[phishphorce]

Opened my first BCBCS last night. Not infected. Just entirely different than what most are used to with BCBCS. Citrus profile to that coffee and its freaking people out.

 

[tehzachatak]

Can't find a source on it yet, so maybe it's BS, but just saw a repost in a FB group of the following letter from GI:

BCBCS & BCBBW News:

To our loyal fans,

Each year you stand in long lines in the cold to get your hands on Bourbon County Stout and the special variants. This is beer that we hope is shared on special occasions, or maybe even makes the occasion special. Beer that we truly hope helps strengthen bonds and makes lasting memories.

I want you to know that the entire team at Goose Island puts our heart and soul into making Bourbon County, and we understand and appreciate your high expectations for them. It is always our intention to put forth the best beer we can craft. When we don’t meet those expectations we take it personally, and we want to make it right.

It has come to our attention that since bottling the 2015 Bourbon County Coffee and Bourbon County Barleywine, they have developed flavors that are not consistent with our expectation of how these beers should taste. That’s not to say the beer doesn’t taste good, in fact some drinkers may enjoy it very much. However, it doesn’t meet our standards for the taste profile of these beers.

All of our beer goes through a very thorough quality oversight process including sensory and microbiology programs. This by no means is a guarantee of success especially with barrel aged beers. Both of these beers have drifted out of their target character thus leading us to provide refunds for anyone who is unsatisfied with them. Anyone who would like a refund for 2015 Bourbon County Coffee or 2015 Bourbon County Barleywine, please contact us at 1-800-Goose-Me.

In spite of the risks inherent with barrel aging, our quest to grow these beers and our barrel aging program will persevere. I hope you continue to join us in this adventure.

Very Truly,
Jared Jankoski

 

[phishphorce]

http://www.gooseisland.com/blog.html?id=post_11