Jan 6, 2020

North Coast Barrel-Aged Old Rasputin XXII

I’ve said it many times throughout the life of this site – North Coast’s Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout has been a big part of my beer drinking life. It’s an all time personal favorite and was quite integral to my early beery development. The company’s Bourbon barrel-aged variant takes that favorite beer and cranks up the enjoyment big time!

This big stout, combined with its time in barrels, makes for a wonderfully decadent experience. The base robustness mingles nicely with wood, Bourbon and a touch of vanilla. Coffee, cocoa and a touch of campfire roastiness fill in the gaps smoothly for a well, rounded and nicely balanced swallow.

The XXII variant of the beer feels a bit smoother than previous versions, but that may just be my polluted memory not fully remembering prior experiences. As with each year’s release, North Coast have themselves a classic that all stout fan needs to hunt down. Oh, and that Rye barrel variant is pretty damn tasty, as well.

This is a review of a promotional sample.