The initial nose of BA Old Rasputin when poured is heavenly and quickly dissipating. Dark chocolate and barrel aging really dominate the complexities of this brew. Great with chocolate chip cookies, this is a very smooth barrel aged ale with a slight and balanced tannin bite. It does not posses the the dark fruit complexity of some barrel aged offerings. Far from a flat profile, it has a rich almost maple character. While an amazing world class brew it still falls short of Parabola, BA Plead the 5th, or Black Note. Overall I really enjoyed BA Old Rasputin. I am a big fan of regular Old Rasputin and this steps it up with a definite oakey chocolate addition.
Barrel Aged Old Rasputin was on my list of must try brews. As barrel aged brews go, this is most certainly in my top ten or fifteen. However at the end of the day many first class non-barrel aged Imperial Stouts come close to this one.
