I have been really excited to try this brew! This beer is part of Goose Island's special release and was released on a limited basis in the metro area. Big John is an Imperial Stout aged on cocoa nibs at 11.5% abv and 60 ibus. I let the bottle set out a while to get the beer warmed up a bit. Big John poured very dark black with little head initially but after subsequent pours gained additional head. The smell was dominated by the cocoa with no real discernable hop presence. The mouthfeel was very thick and fulfilling. The taste was completely dominated by the cocoa. I hunted for other characteristics (hop flavor/malt) but was brought back to the overwhelming cocoa flavor. I believe this beer would benefit from additional aging in hopes the cocoa flavor would mellow and allow some other characteristics of the beer to come through. Luckily I have another bottle that I will age and review it again later. My advice if you are lucky enough to have scored a bottle of Big John is to let it age at least 6 months before drinking. If you're like me this will be torture but hopefully you will be rewarded with a more mellow and enjoyable brew. I got my Big John from Gomer's midtown and as of Friday evening they said they still had a few in the back.
Cheers
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