Barrel Aged Aliferous Imperial Stout

Review Date 3/28/2023  By John Staradumsky

           

Fire Maker Brewery! I almost didn’t make it there! Not, of course, because of some tragic occurrence that almost kept me from getting there, not at all. In fact, it was simply because I did not realize how close we were to them. We were on the way to Bold Monk Brewing, you see, for my birthday week celebration with my kids, when my oldest son asked me “Fire Maker brewing, have you ever been there?” No, I confessed, to which he replied we had just gone by them.

For my part, I never even saw them, which is saying something because they are rather hard to miss as you head down Chattahoochee Avenue. The towering grain silo emblazoned with their logo and the large billboard are dead giveaways. Still, I managed to miss them entirely, nose buried as it was in a work email on my phone. We added them as the second stop on our pub crawl agenda. Hadn’t I had their beer before? I had not. That was Stillfire I was thinking of.

Once we arrived and entered the building, we got a table and the kids sifted through the boardgame selection. Deciding on Battleship, they started to play while I ordered us some tasty beverages. My first selection was Aliferous Imperial Stout, the 2022 Bourbon Barrel Aged edition.

Fire Maker says:

This beer is the epitome of darkness. Aliferous demands respect both with its full body and massive flavor profile. Coffee, milk chocolate, sweet cherries, and dark chocolate are all over the nose and flavor that create a monstrous brew. Going one step further, we put Aliferous into 8 & 12 yr. Elijah Craig barrels for 6 months and aged on figs and truffles for 1 month. Vanilla and whiskey flavors get pulled from the barrel.

I chose wisely with this beer as it was the best of those I tasted here. Fire Maker proudly announces they are the “#2 Best New Brewery in America” for 2022 according to USA Today. It’s right there on that big billboard I missed because my nose was stuck in that work email.

2022 Bourbon Barrel Aged  Fire Maker Aliferous Imperial Stout has an alcohol content of 14% by volume, which is the legal limit for beer here in Georgia. Silly, that. A 10oz Draft was $12.00. It was so good I bought one for my daughter’s boyfriend, too.

My 2022 Bourbon Barrel Aged  Fire Maker Aliferous Imperial Stout arrived a jet-black color with a tight cap of creamy tan foam and a big beautiful boozy bourbon nose. Taking a sip the beer is rich and full in body, woody, hints at coconut, coffee, and chocolate. There is a hint of dark fruity fig, and the boozy bourbon reemerges in the long dry bitter finish that lingers with alcohol warmth.

A very complex sipping beer and one I would love to drink again. Perhaps I should go back and pick up a crowler to take home?

Glad I tried it?  T

Would I rebuy it??

 

*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.

(B)=Bottled, Canned

(D)=Draft





 

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