Brewery: | Begyle Brewing Company |
Location | Chicago, IL |
Style | BA Imperial Coffee Stout |
ABV | 9.8% |
IBUs | n/a |
Best Quote During Tasting
Before you finish, open your mouth and breathe it in.
Justin:
Aroma - HUGE bourbon on the nose with some burnt caramel, vanilla and brown sugar. It's got big raisin and plum but hot damn there's some booziness in there. No coffee anywhere |
Score: 10/12 |
Appearance - Pours an opaque, deep brown with a thin brown head comprised mostly of a slick film. |
Score: 3/3 |
Flavor - Big raisin, big bourbon. Lots of plum. There's bitterness that the coffee provides and the coffee wants to show up but it's hard to find other than its earthiness. |
Score: 17/20 |
Mouthfeel - The body is medium and the carbonation matches it well. It's verging on creamy but doesn't quite get there. |
Score: 4/5 |
Overall Impression - The alcohol from the bourbon was huge on this. Absolutely huge. Thankfully, the malts were big enough to knock it back just a little bit. It didn't have perfect balance but when I'm drinking a BA beer, I like to taste the barrel character so I really enjoyed this one. |
Score: 8/10 |
Blake:
Aroma - Wow, this one is almost all booze up front. Just tons of bourbon, oak, and vanilla. There is some nice chocolate and dark fruits from the malts, and they become a bit more apparent as the beer warms up. Unfortunately, no one was able to pick up any coffee. |
Score: 10/12 |
Appearance - Black as the depths of the ocean, and deep brown at the edges when held to the light. Thin mocha head sits on top, and much better retention than what we found in the regular Imperial Pajamas. |
Score: 3/3 |
Flavor - The bourbon is a bit more mellow in the flavor than in the aroma. It's still a big presence giving more of that vanilla and oak flavor, but it luckily doesn't have the burn that occurs in the aroma. Like the original, there is a lot more dark fruit than you'd expect, but it blends even better in the barrel aged version. |
Score: 17/20 |
Mouthfeel - Medium verging on full bodied with medium carbonation giving BA Imperial Pajamas a slick and smooth mouthfeel. |
Score: 4/5 |
Overall Impression - Honestly, if I could find the coffee in this one I'd probably rate it a lot higher. It's a really solid beer, and I kind of wish I had picked a couple more to cellar and try over time. It gives me an excuse to go back to Begyle when I go up to Chicago again. |
Score: 8/10 |
Barrel Aged Imperial Pajamas Final Score
- Aroma
- Appearance
- Flavor
- Mouthfeel
- Overall
4.2

Justin Phelps
Co-Founder at Saint Brewis
Justin Phelps is a Certified Cicerone® who was born and raised in St. Louis. His passion for beer goes beyond just drinking it as he is also an award-winning home brewer. While he may be a marketing professional by day, he's a blogger, brewery hopper, and beer enthusiast by night.

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