Ab-InBev’s Goose Island Beer Company has unveiled the 2023 lineup of their annual Bourbon County Stout series.
This year’s releases include:
2023 Bourbon County Brand Original Stout
Aged in a mix of freshly emptied bourbon barrels from Buffalo Trace, Heaven Hill, Four Roses and Wild Turkey distilleries.
Barrel-aged for an average of 12 months, Bourbon County Original Stout has flavors of fudge, vanilla and caramelized sugar, with a rich mouthfeel, the company says.
Available nationally.
2023 Bourbon County Brand Eagle Rare 2-Year Reserve Stout
Aged for two years in Eagle Rare 10-year-old barrels.
Tasting notes: Oak, toasted almond and warming vanilla.
Available nationally.
2023 Bourbon County Brand Angel’s Envy 2-Year Cask Finish Stout
Goose Island’s first-ever “Cask Finish” stout. The beer starts in freshly emptied barrels that once held Angel’s Envy Kentucky straight bourbon. After aging in those for a year, the beer transferred to a second set of Ruby Port wine barrels, where the beer matured for another year. This finishing process refined and amplified the flavors of cherry, spice and cocoa within this aged stout, the company reports.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with Goose Island, to be a part of their annual iconic Bourbon County Stout lineup,” says Owen Martin, Master Distiller of Angel’s Envy. “What’s exciting about the Angel’s Envy BCS collaboration is the beer is finished in a way that replicates how we finish our award-winning bourbon, in port wine barrels. We believe that the secondary finishing process, when done with intention, opens up exciting, new opportunities to enhance and elevate bourbon — or in this case, stout — to unexpected places.”
Tasting notes: Cherry, spice and cocoa.
Available nationally.
2023 Bourbon County Brand Bananas Foster Stout
Welcoming back another member of the family this year, 2023 Bourbon County Brand Bananas Foster Stout makes its debut on the national stage.
This recipe first released in 2017 as Bourbon County Brand Proprietor’s Stout only to Chicago drinkers. At that time, the brewery hadn’t experimented with bananas much. However, innovation brewer Quinn Fuechsl had a hunch that the fruit, along with almond and cassia bark, would be ideal ingredients in a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout, the company says.
“We released our first-ever Proprietor’s Variant in 2013, the same year I started as an intern here at Goose,” says Fuechsl. “The bold coconut flavor in that variant set the tone for what Proprietor’s would be as part of the BCS portfolio — something that was boundary pushing and adventurous. For my part, I’ve always loved and gravitated towards the flavor of bananas; I’m a big fan of chocolate covered bananas, my favorite pie is banana cream, and bananas are a staple on my breakfast menus. Yet, I rarely ever saw them used in stouts, so I thought it would be an ideal ingredient to add to a Proprietor’s variant.
“Over the next few Goose Island Beer Co. 2023 Bourbon County Stout Fact Sheet years I submitted multiple variants using bananas in different forms while pairing them with all sorts of complimentary ingredients,” Fuechsl adds. “Roasted almonds and cinnamon ended up being the bridge to the Original Stout notes of vanilla, chocolate and oak that allowed the banana character to shine through and put its unique stamp on Bourbon County Brand Stout. Since then I’ve been lucky enough to try a lot more barrel-aged stouts from many talented brewers across the country, each with their own unique take on how to express that flavor I enjoy so much. I’m humbled by the love this beer got in 2017, and I’m very excited to share it with a larger audience in 2023.”
Ingredients: Banana, almond, cassia bark and natural flavor.
Tasting Notes: Ripe bananas, toasted almond, brown sugar and cinnamon.
Available nationally.
2023 Bourbon County Brand Backyard Stout
Feeling nostalgic this year, Goose’s brewers dove into the Bourbon County vault and pulled out an old recipe. In 2013, the brewery released “Backyard Rye,” and senior innovation manager Mike Siegel found himself hand picking mulberries off trees just steps away from the Goose Island Barrel House in Chicago. Inspired by that initial release and by his own childhood memories of picking fruit in his own backyard, Siegel set to work on this year’s 2023 Bourbon County Brand Backyard Stout, the company says.
This barrel-aged stout is first aged in bourbon barrels for at least one year, and then finished and blended with mulberries, boysenberries and marionberries.
Ingredients: Mulberry, boysenberry and marionberry.
Tasting Notes: Chocolate, vanilla and berry fruit.
Available nationally.
2023 Bourbon County Brand Proprietor’s Stout
Year after year, Proprietor’s Stout is an homage to the adventurous craft beer community in Chicago, the company explains. In the heart of Chicago winter, the Goose team was inspired by the flavors of a classic dessert: rice pudding. This beer uses a combination of cassia bark, brown sugar, raisins and toasted rice.
Ingredients: Cassia bark, toasted rice, raisins and natural flavor.
Tasting Notes: Toasted rice, dried fruit, vanilla custard and warming spice.
Available in the Chicago market.
All of these releases come in a 16.9-oz. glass bottle.
Suggested retail prices vary per product and market.
“As architects of bourbon barrel-aged stout, our 2023 lineup could not be more reflective of what we strive to achieve here at Goose Island Beer Co.,” says Todd Ahsmann, President, Goose Island Beer Co. “Our brewers demonstrate not only a mastery of their craft in brewing, but also a mastery of their skill in blending — which is such a crucial component to the unique quality and character of Bourbon County. From our Original Stout, to our exceptional variants, and to our newest innovation, Bourbon County Cask Finish Stout, our 2023 lineup showcases the work and dedication that goes into every pour of the original bourbon barrel-aged stout.”
