I haven't had a Bourbon County since at least twelve years ago but even the stroke failed to delete the memory I have of that stout so i can only imagine how good this tastes. I'm a bit disappointed you never got much coconut as that would probably be my dream beer. A Bourbon County coconut stout! Cheers Joe.
They've made some coconut versions of BCBS in the past, so you would've been in heaven, Dave! This is a really good barrel-aged beer, but the adjuncts -- outside of the cacao nibs -- didn't shine through, and it certainly didn't remind me of a macaroon at all. I'd happily drink it, though. The price point is wacky! I hope you get to try BCBS or one of its variants down the line, sir. If shipping wasn't insane, I would gladly send you a couple. Cheers, buddy!
Thank you mate I'm definitely going to hunt some down in 2025. And likewise on the shipping, it's what stops me sending beers across the pond. Not only the expense but the fact you're playing Russian Roulette with customs every time. Cheers. @@averagejoe716
Hope you enjoy it, Billy! Not sure how the adjuncts will age/hold up, but I'll be curious to hear about it, so let me know when you crack it! It's 16 F and cloudy right now. Last night, the low hit 3 F. Brrrrrrr! Cheers, buddy!
~~~ We had a Bourbon County release party here in Orlando the night before Thanksgiving. We began with the base and I was almost shocked by how thin it was. Proceeded with the Macaroon and loved the body in contrast to the base, but also did not get enough coconut and almost zero ginger. I love macaroons and drink ginger tea daily, so this was quite a let down. The Vanilla Rye was very good and certainly enough Vanilla. Sadly that made it hard to discern the rye. I am aging the Bardstown for at least a year and the reviews have been varied on it. Perhaps there are "too many chefs in the kitchen" as the saying goes, at Goose Island these days. Hope they sort it out soon. Great review. CHEERS!
I pretty much agree with everything you said. My Vanilla Rye review will be out next Sunday, and what you said is precisely what I experienced. As for this beer, I'm right there with you. I didn't necessarily want a huge ginger character, but I barely detected any, and considering I'm a coconut fiend, the lack of toasted coconut notes was disappointing. Still a damn fine barrel-aged beer, but the only adjunct I got that was noticeable were the cacao nibs. I do hope they go back to basics going forward. There's no reason not to have the base, a coffee variant and a Barleywine release each year that make distro. Throw in a fourth "weird" variant, but bring back those classics. Stop getting too fancy with it. Thanks, Gregory! Happy Holidays, sir! Cheers!
Oh, for sure! Love innovation and creativity, but if you're not hitting the mark for most, you need to rethink your ideas, IMO. I think they need to go back to basics for the readily available variants, and then throw one or two "weird" offerings out there.
Good review. A Giant Eagle (regional grocery store) had a shelf full of all these variants. I considered it but after seeing pretty average reviews from people, especially Dan since I trust his palate, I decided to not buy the variants. Had they been a few bucks cheaper I would have considered it, but $25 felt steep for something that probably wasn’t going to blow me away. I’m comparing it to something like Burial’s adjunct stouts, which are all excellent, have a ton of local ingredients packed in one beer for like $20, and they’re way smaller than Goose Island. The Bourbon County variants feel like a minor price gouge for something not as good as most years.
Thanks, Curtis! Woah, woah, woah ... you trust Dan's palate? UNFRIENDED! LOL! Yeah, the base is the only one worth its actual cost, and this year's base is a bit underwhelming, so even then it's probably not worth it. The two variants = not significantly better than the base to the point where I'd pay an extra $10-12 per bottle. If they were in the $19.99 range, then I would recommend 'em. I hear ya about local/regional breweries putting out some great barrel-aged adjunct beers and the price point is way more in-line. Heck, Big Ditch, one of my favorite local breweries, pumped out a bunch of different Aqueduct beers, and all of them cost $16 for a 16.9 fl. oz bottle, and there were some cool variants. Just make it make sense. Cheers, man!
@ Hey your review wasn’t in yet! Lol. I do trust his palate though. That’s a great deal for those Big Ditch beers. I feel like they should be around that price, but it also depends what’s in the beer adjunct wise. If the reviews were awesome on one of the Bourbon County variants I would have probably grabbed it, but for $25 I’m not looking for something that’s like “Yeah, that’s good I guess.” I can get like 4-6 beers that I KNOW will be good for that price.
Dead to me, Curtis. DEAD TO ME! I used to do the same before I reviewed, especially if I trusted someone's palate. It really helped making decisions, for sure. I totally get why you wouldn't grab them, especially since the style isn't your favorite or anything. Not worth paying a premium for a "good" beer as opposed to a top-tier or world class offering.
@ God damn it! I’ll hav to earn your trust back somehow. Lol I think it actually is becoming one of my favorite styles, but because I don’t drink them often enough (due to ABV) I’d say my palate is still intermediate at telling good from great, although that Side Project from a year ago I thought was special at the time. If the Macaroon variant were close to the price of the regular I’d have just grabbed it to see, but $25 for some reason feels like a price point threshold I didn’t want to cross and the less than glowing reviews made me think twice about it. Plus, I’d just bought 2 $20 bottles of wine for a family Christmas party and 2 bottles of liquor for a gift. I’d spent enough. Lol
Once you've broken the trust, it's all over. It's done. OVAH! LOL! That is awesome to hear. I can definitely see it. It's cool when you start diving into a style, but still don't partake in them too often to make sure they stay a special treat. I would say, based on the things you've sent and what you've had, your palate is quite good when it comes to the style. I hear ya, man. If the price point was sub-$20, I think more people would be inclined to try 'em. Just crazy amounts of money for something that might not be as good as the base, which costs almost half the price. Stupid.
Cracked mine yesterday and we are largely aligned, brother. I wasn’t mad at the ginger not being present because a coconut macaroon shouldn’t have a ginger taste to me personally, but it was an interesting aspect for them to include and i wonder if it helps the beer age or balances the sweetness (or somethin?). Just a decadent, tasty beer all around that accomplishes what it should (for me), but isn’t mindblowing or overly complex or anythin. Would love to see it 5-7 bucks cheaper! Don’t see myself buyin’ a second bottle unless it goes on sale at some point. I was in the relative minority this year and pretty damn pleased with the base, so could see myself scoopin’ another 1 or 2. WHERE’S THE TOASTED COCONUT. Lol. Cheers Joe
I've had macaroons with and without ginger, and my preference is definitely without. Just don't see the need for the ginger since it's typically pretty intense. That said, if you're going to use it in a beer, I'd like to taste it! My hunch is that because it's candied ginger, it was much more mild than fresh ginger would've been. That really didn't disappoint me, but the mild toasted coconut was an issue. A classic macaroon to me is coconut with a chocolate bottom, and I ended up getting one half of it, which is unfortunate. I saw that you dug the base. I still stand by the base is really good, just not as good as prior years. I'd happily drink it whenever, haha! Thank you for everything, Rick, including watching to the end of this ridiculous review. Happy Holidays, sirness! Cheers!
@@averagejoe716 love me a good 'roon w/ choc on the bottom, lol (my mom and sis make 'em next level). though i can also respect a pure chocolate-less macaroon. damn need some homemade macaroons now. hope your holidays are kickin' off well, good sir!
The Macaroon variant I enjoyed it more the second time I had it but still not mind blowing. I usually only buy one of each Bourbon County variants (besides maybe the base) unless one really stands out, like the Sir Issac variant from 2022 which was fantastic. But I agree that the price point is too high, by me they’re $20-22 for the mid variants and I think they should be like $15-$18 per bottle. Probably would be more appealing and would seem “more” worth it. I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts on the Vanilla Rye. For someone who loves both I enjoyed it less the second time I had it. WHERE’S THE TOASTED COCONUT? Cheers Joe 🍻
I typically do the same, Cameron. One of the base and any variants. If I like any of them, I'll buy another bottle. The price points, however, as getting ridiculous, as the variants that make distro everywhere should not cost almost double the price of the base. Maybe $5-7 more, but not $10-12. That's insane. I totally agree with you. My Vanilla Rye review goes up next Sunday, and let's just say it follows the pattern that both the base and this one did. Probably my favorite of the three, but it seems the quality is a bit lacking in comparison to prior years. It's unfortunate. Also, appreciate you watching to the end and the continued support of the channel, sir. Hope you and your fam have an amazing holiday season, buddy! Cheers!
Where is the toasted coconut, Jeff? LMAO! Appreciate you watching to the end, good sir! Merry Christmas to you, your wife and the entire fam, buddy! Cheers!
I liked the base more than this one. I got a deep fudge and a ginger flavor......I didn't even taste coconut but a lot of boozyness. I scored it around what would be a 3.9 - 4 Cheers Joe....... damn it Joe making me edit my comment #where'sthetoastedcoconut
I liked this slightly more than the base because the body and chocolate characters seemed more intense. Both were still quite good, just not as good as I expect from the lineup. I appreciate you chiming in with your opinions on both so far, Jesse! It's my goal in life to make you edit your comments, but I love that you watched to the end, LMAO! Cheers, buddy!
Great review as usual, cheers!🍻
Thanks, Rick! Hope all is well with you, dude. Happy Holidays!
Cheers!
@averagejoe716 thanks bro, Happy Holidays to you as well!🍻
I haven't had a Bourbon County since at least twelve years ago but even the stroke failed to delete the memory I have of that stout so i can only imagine how good this tastes. I'm a bit disappointed you never got much coconut as that would probably be my dream beer. A Bourbon County coconut stout! Cheers Joe.
They've made some coconut versions of BCBS in the past, so you would've been in heaven, Dave! This is a really good barrel-aged beer, but the adjuncts -- outside of the cacao nibs -- didn't shine through, and it certainly didn't remind me of a macaroon at all. I'd happily drink it, though. The price point is wacky! I hope you get to try BCBS or one of its variants down the line, sir. If shipping wasn't insane, I would gladly send you a couple.
Cheers, buddy!
Thank you mate I'm definitely going to hunt some down in 2025. And likewise on the shipping, it's what stops me sending beers across the pond. Not only the expense but the fact you're playing Russian Roulette with customs every time. Cheers. @@averagejoe716
I've got onr in my cellar probably going to drink it next year sometime. 46° cheers 🍻
Hope you enjoy it, Billy! Not sure how the adjuncts will age/hold up, but I'll be curious to hear about it, so let me know when you crack it! It's 16 F and cloudy right now. Last night, the low hit 3 F. Brrrrrrr!
Cheers, buddy!
Great review ! Have you had the Vanilla Rye yet ?
Thanks, Tatt King! Yes, I reviewed the Vanilla Rye and the review will be posted on Sunday.
Cheers!
~~~ We had a Bourbon County release party here in Orlando the night before Thanksgiving. We began with the base and I was almost shocked by how thin it was. Proceeded with the Macaroon and loved the body in contrast to the base, but also did not get enough coconut and almost zero ginger. I love macaroons and drink ginger tea daily, so this was quite a let down. The Vanilla Rye was very good and certainly enough Vanilla. Sadly that made it hard to discern the rye. I am aging the Bardstown for at least a year and the reviews have been varied on it. Perhaps there are "too many chefs in the kitchen" as the saying goes, at Goose Island these days. Hope they sort it out soon. Great review. CHEERS!
I pretty much agree with everything you said. My Vanilla Rye review will be out next Sunday, and what you said is precisely what I experienced. As for this beer, I'm right there with you. I didn't necessarily want a huge ginger character, but I barely detected any, and considering I'm a coconut fiend, the lack of toasted coconut notes was disappointing. Still a damn fine barrel-aged beer, but the only adjunct I got that was noticeable were the cacao nibs. I do hope they go back to basics going forward. There's no reason not to have the base, a coffee variant and a Barleywine release each year that make distro. Throw in a fourth "weird" variant, but bring back those classics. Stop getting too fancy with it. Thanks, Gregory! Happy Holidays, sir!
Cheers!
@@averagejoe716 I'm OK with unusual and tasty, Weird for weirdness sake not so much.
Oh, for sure! Love innovation and creativity, but if you're not hitting the mark for most, you need to rethink your ideas, IMO. I think they need to go back to basics for the readily available variants, and then throw one or two "weird" offerings out there.
Ramble on bro, great review…
Thanks, man! Gotta be myself, and rambling is a part of the reviews, haha!
Cheers!
Good review. A Giant Eagle (regional grocery store) had a shelf full of all these variants. I considered it but after seeing pretty average reviews from people, especially Dan since I trust his palate, I decided to not buy the variants. Had they been a few bucks cheaper I would have considered it, but $25 felt steep for something that probably wasn’t going to blow me away.
I’m comparing it to something like Burial’s adjunct stouts, which are all excellent, have a ton of local ingredients packed in one beer for like $20, and they’re way smaller than Goose Island. The Bourbon County variants feel like a minor price gouge for something not as good as most years.
Thanks, Curtis! Woah, woah, woah ... you trust Dan's palate? UNFRIENDED! LOL! Yeah, the base is the only one worth its actual cost, and this year's base is a bit underwhelming, so even then it's probably not worth it. The two variants = not significantly better than the base to the point where I'd pay an extra $10-12 per bottle. If they were in the $19.99 range, then I would recommend 'em.
I hear ya about local/regional breweries putting out some great barrel-aged adjunct beers and the price point is way more in-line. Heck, Big Ditch, one of my favorite local breweries, pumped out a bunch of different Aqueduct beers, and all of them cost $16 for a 16.9 fl. oz bottle, and there were some cool variants. Just make it make sense.
Cheers, man!
@ Hey your review wasn’t in yet! Lol. I do trust his palate though. That’s a great deal for those Big Ditch beers. I feel like they should be around that price, but it also depends what’s in the beer adjunct wise.
If the reviews were awesome on one of the Bourbon County variants I would have probably grabbed it, but for $25 I’m not looking for something that’s like “Yeah, that’s good I guess.” I can get like 4-6 beers that I KNOW will be good for that price.
Dead to me, Curtis. DEAD TO ME! I used to do the same before I reviewed, especially if I trusted someone's palate. It really helped making decisions, for sure.
I totally get why you wouldn't grab them, especially since the style isn't your favorite or anything. Not worth paying a premium for a "good" beer as opposed to a top-tier or world class offering.
@ God damn it! I’ll hav to earn your trust back somehow. Lol
I think it actually is becoming one of my favorite styles, but because I don’t drink them often enough (due to ABV) I’d say my palate is still intermediate at telling good from great, although that Side Project from a year ago I thought was special at the time.
If the Macaroon variant were close to the price of the regular I’d have just grabbed it to see, but $25 for some reason feels like a price point threshold I didn’t want to cross and the less than glowing reviews made me think twice about it. Plus, I’d just bought 2 $20 bottles of wine for a family Christmas party and 2 bottles of liquor for a gift. I’d spent enough. Lol
Once you've broken the trust, it's all over. It's done. OVAH! LOL!
That is awesome to hear. I can definitely see it. It's cool when you start diving into a style, but still don't partake in them too often to make sure they stay a special treat. I would say, based on the things you've sent and what you've had, your palate is quite good when it comes to the style.
I hear ya, man. If the price point was sub-$20, I think more people would be inclined to try 'em. Just crazy amounts of money for something that might not be as good as the base, which costs almost half the price. Stupid.
Cracked mine yesterday and we are largely aligned, brother. I wasn’t mad at the ginger not being present because a coconut macaroon shouldn’t have a ginger taste to me personally, but it was an interesting aspect for them to include and i wonder if it helps the beer age or balances the sweetness (or somethin?). Just a decadent, tasty beer all around that accomplishes what it should (for me), but isn’t mindblowing or overly complex or anythin. Would love to see it 5-7 bucks cheaper! Don’t see myself buyin’ a second bottle unless it goes on sale at some point. I was in the relative minority this year and pretty damn pleased with the base, so could see myself scoopin’ another 1 or 2. WHERE’S THE TOASTED COCONUT. Lol. Cheers Joe
I've had macaroons with and without ginger, and my preference is definitely without. Just don't see the need for the ginger since it's typically pretty intense. That said, if you're going to use it in a beer, I'd like to taste it! My hunch is that because it's candied ginger, it was much more mild than fresh ginger would've been. That really didn't disappoint me, but the mild toasted coconut was an issue. A classic macaroon to me is coconut with a chocolate bottom, and I ended up getting one half of it, which is unfortunate. I saw that you dug the base. I still stand by the base is really good, just not as good as prior years. I'd happily drink it whenever, haha! Thank you for everything, Rick, including watching to the end of this ridiculous review. Happy Holidays, sirness!
Cheers!
@@averagejoe716 love me a good 'roon w/ choc on the bottom, lol (my mom and sis make 'em next level). though i can also respect a pure chocolate-less macaroon. damn need some homemade macaroons now. hope your holidays are kickin' off well, good sir!
I hope you give your mom and sis a lil' nudge this holiday season so they can crank out some macaroon goodness, haha!
The Macaroon variant I enjoyed it more the second time I had it but still not mind blowing. I usually only buy one of each Bourbon County variants (besides maybe the base) unless one really stands out, like the Sir Issac variant from 2022 which was fantastic. But I agree that the price point is too high, by me they’re $20-22 for the mid variants and I think they should be like $15-$18 per bottle. Probably would be more appealing and would seem “more” worth it. I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts on the Vanilla Rye. For someone who loves both I enjoyed it less the second time I had it. WHERE’S THE TOASTED COCONUT? Cheers Joe 🍻
I typically do the same, Cameron. One of the base and any variants. If I like any of them, I'll buy another bottle. The price points, however, as getting ridiculous, as the variants that make distro everywhere should not cost almost double the price of the base. Maybe $5-7 more, but not $10-12. That's insane. I totally agree with you. My Vanilla Rye review goes up next Sunday, and let's just say it follows the pattern that both the base and this one did. Probably my favorite of the three, but it seems the quality is a bit lacking in comparison to prior years. It's unfortunate. Also, appreciate you watching to the end and the continued support of the channel, sir. Hope you and your fam have an amazing holiday season, buddy!
Cheers!
Where’s the toasted coconut? 🍻
Where is the toasted coconut, Jeff? LMAO! Appreciate you watching to the end, good sir! Merry Christmas to you, your wife and the entire fam, buddy!
Cheers!
@ Thanks Joe! Merry Christmas buddy!
I liked the base more than this one. I got a deep fudge and a ginger flavor......I didn't even taste coconut but a lot of boozyness. I scored it around what would be a 3.9 - 4
Cheers Joe....... damn it Joe making me edit my comment #where'sthetoastedcoconut
I liked this slightly more than the base because the body and chocolate characters seemed more intense. Both were still quite good, just not as good as I expect from the lineup. I appreciate you chiming in with your opinions on both so far, Jesse! It's my goal in life to make you edit your comments, but I love that you watched to the end, LMAO!
Cheers, buddy!