Beer Review: Rum Barrel Aged Marshal Zhukov's Imperial Stout

Reviewing the Rum Barrel Aged Marshal Zhukov's Imperial Stout from Cigar City Brewing out of Tampa, Florida.

Score: 96

Growlered on 04/29/14. Served in a Toppling Goliath snifter and enjoyed on 05/02/14. Review is from iPhone notes

Appearance: Pours an inky black color with just under a finger of brown espresso head that settles to a thick ring around the glass. Good lacing and retention with nice oily legs and major browning from swirling. Looks exactly like you would expect for the style. 5/5

Smell: Rummy dark fruit and oak, with a touch of alcohol. Light chocolate notes too, and a hint of coffee. Warms up to a lovely molasses/syrup flavor. 4.5/5

Taste: Sweet rum, raisins and fig, with dashes of syrup, oaky vanilla and licorice. Finishes with a nice bakers chocolate flavor and a little bit of coffee flavor, both of which linger nicely. As the beer warms up, the syrup and coffee flavors come through more, and the strong initial sweetness of the beer right out of the fridge mellows out. Really tasty and well integrated. 4.5/5

Mouthfeel: Full bodied, spot on carbonation. Very viscous, syrupy mouthfeel. Quite sweet upfront on the palate, with a nice residual bitterness for balance to the finish. The sweetness mellows out as it warms up. 4.75/5

Overall: An excellent barrel treatment on an excellent imperial stout. Cannot wait for the barrel aged releases of Marshal Zhukov in bottles later this year. Seek this one out with confidence and drink it on the warmer side. Cheers!

Cost: $25 for a 32 oz growler.