Beer - Black Ops
Style - Imperial stout aged in bourbon barrels and re-fermented in the bottle with Champagne yeast
ABV - 11.5%
Color - Opaque black with a tan to light brown head
Aroma - Milk chocolate, toffee, anise, blackberry, vanilla, hint of coffee, bourbon, sweet alcohol aroma similar to sake
Flavor - Semi-sweet chocolate chips, vanilla, medium roast coffee, bourbony goodness, definite alcohol flavor, blueberry in the finish?
Verdict - This is a very enjoyable rich imperial stout that has the noticeable aroma and flavor of alcohol, but drinks lighter than one would expect. There is not a discernible "hotness" from the ABV, even though it makes its presence known through the other senses. Still, if you're lucky enough to find a bottle, I would recommend aging it for at least 6 months. That should mellow out the strong alcohol character. As is though, this is a solid and enjoyable brew. If I can find some more (which I doubt), I will have to buy a bottle or two and put it in my Brewbicle for future sampling...
P.S. - The mystique revolving around this beer is awesome. I went to the Brooklyn brewing website to get more info for this Beer Brief, but didn't see Black Ops listed with their other brews. I had to do a Google search to get the "secret" Black Ops page on Brooklyn's website to show up. Here's the link to the page so you can read the very cool description on their site.
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