Beer Thoughts: Avery Uncle Jacob's Stout
Beer Info:
The beer is named in honor of Jacob Spears, credited as the first distiller to name his whiskey 'bourbon.' This is a massive 17.4% American Imperial Stout, aged six months in bourbon barrels. 694 cases of this were bottled, compared to the 188 cases of their Muscat D' Amor (which I believe is my favorite Avery beer ever!). Even Colorado Springs received a few cases of the Muscat (and you can still find it if you look for it), so I'm assuming we'll get at least a few cases of this in the near future.
Beer Thoughts:
Very excited to try this beer, although it's overwhelming to think about the alcohol. Very nice thick brown head, nice lacing. Aromas of chocolate, plum and dark fruits with some roast. It's thick and syrupy, engine oil like. The taste has lots of licorice, chocolate, bourbon notes, complex currant and dark fruit notes. This one is very fun to sip. It's surprisingly creamy because there's also a heavy, kind of astringent booziness to it, so the creaminess cuts through some of that. There aren't too many of these heavy complex American Imperial Stouts around in Colorado so it's very nice to have this one, it's in the vein of Dark Lord, Abyss, Sexual Chocolate without really being too much like any one of them. Buy a few, try one now, put the others away for a while.
Our Recommendation:
High recommendations, especially for the person who cellars beer. High recommendation for the beer lover who really enjoys big crazy beers.
Drinking It/Aging:
Firstly, if you can, cellar off a few of these...In 3-4 years we think this beer will hit its prime, the alcohol burn will wear off and this will be smoother, with much more oak, bourbon, and dark fruit character. You'll probably wish you bought twice as many of these. At 17.4% this would be difficult to drink alone, but doable if you really stretch it out over a few hours since it's only in a 12oz bottle. It's meant for sipping slowly.
Where It's From:
Avery Brewing Co., Boulder, CO
Full Disclosure:
We received our bottle for free in the mail.
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