Next Round: Even more rare 'Black Friday' stout

Beer lovers may shop on Black Friday but they seek a different prey: stout.

Specifically, Goose Island Beer Co.'s Bourbon County Brand Stout and the brewery's other annual special barrel-aged releases.

Every year, fans of the beer scout out locations and line up the day after Thanksgiving for their shot at getting a bottle or two of the limited quantities available.

Just as there's competition for doorbuster deals on big-screen TVs and other holiday gifts, so it is with the BCBS beers. What's the big deal? Well, the Chicago-based brewery, an independent purchased by Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2011, led the way in the process of barrel-aging of beers -- a now-common process done by craft breweries across the U.S.

"Goose Island was one of the early pioneers of making a great bourbon barrel aged stout. They also went a step further by introducing inventive variants that pushed the boundaries of taste," said Tristan Chan, creator of the PorchDrinking.com web site. "And perhaps more importantly, they have created their own tradition and demand around it.  BCBS is only released once a year, the beer is always in limited quantity, and they chose to release it on Black Friday, a time already associated with buyer's hysteria. BCBS is a really great beer, but part of the hype lies in just how well they've been able to turn its release into a spectacle."

Bourbon County Brand Stout is aged for eight months to one year in bourbon barrels. The traditional Bourbon County Brand Stout, first offered in 2004, is known for its boozy aroma, velvety smooth quality and its complex mix of flavors including coffee, chocolate, maple and vanilla. This year's beer checks in at 14.3% alcohol by volume and will cost about $10 or so per bottle.

The crown jewel this year is Goose Island Rare Bourbon County Brand Stout, which has been aged for two years in 35-year-old, once-used bourbon barrels from Heaven Hill Barrels, which makes Evan Williams and Elijah Craig brand bourbons -- and traditionally supplies Goose Island with barrels. Goose Island's only previous Rare release came out in 2010 after being aged two years in Pappy Van Winkle barrels.

"We’ve one-upped ourselves and the buzz seems to be fortunately greater each year," says Mike Siegel, brewing innovation manager at Goose Island.

What makes these barrels special is that Heaven Hill somehow lost track of the bourbon barrels and found them after the whiskey had aged for more than 30 years. When the distillers informed Goose Island about their find, Siegel said, "we grabbed the barrels and we filled them" with their special stout.

"We didn't know what we were going to call it at the time," he said. But they decided to age the beer two years, twice as long as the standard BCBS.

The resulting beer is "certainly in the Bourbon County family," Siegel said. The oak and vanilla aspects of BCBS are not as prevalent. "This has more of an almost maple syrup note to it and a lot of deep fruit character," Siegel said. "The familiar roast and caramel notes are there. There’s a lot of similarities (to BCBS), but the difference is that the barrel and the aging has made it its own beer."

Rare BCBS, Chan said, "has this insane saga behind it, and now beer fanatics are going nuts trying to get their hands on a bottle."

Chan describes the Rare BCBS this way on Porchdrinking.com: "Upon your first sniff you’ll instantly take in strong notes of bourbon/alcoholic heat. But on your first taste it’ll likely feel shocking smooth and velvety," he wrote. "Earthy tones are noticeable throughout the taste. The smell of the beer doesn’t line up with the taste. It doesn’t come off as a hot high-alcohol beer. You won’t believe that you’re drinking a beer with an ABV of nearly 15%."

Goose Island's other special releases out Friday, each like the traditional and Rare BCBS come in a new stylish bottle: Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout, made in collaboration with Intelligentsia coffee; Bourbon County Brand Barleywine, aged in barrels that previously held BCBS; Bourbon County Brand Regal Rye Stout, aged in rye whiskey barrels with fruit including blackberries and cherries; Proprietor’s Bourbon County Brand Stout, aged with toasted pecans and guajillo peppers (only available in Chicago).

Below is a partial list of retailers across the U.S. that will have Goose Island BCBS releases Friday morning. Happy hunting!

Austin, Tex.
HEB Mueller

Caustic, Calif.
Whole Food Playa Vista

Chicago
Binny's on Marcy St.

Denver, Colo.
Argonaut Liquors on Colfax

Fishers, Ind.
Big Red Liquors Broad Ripple

Louisville, Ky.
Liquor Barn

Medway, Mass.
Kappy's Fine Wine & Spirits - Medford

New York City
Top Hops

Orlando, Fla.
Shamrock's Liquor

Plano, Tex.
Total Wine and More - Central Expressway

Philadelphia
Foodery (4 locations)

Phoenix, Ariz.
Gilbert Convenient Mart

Portland, Ore.
John's Market    

Rockville, Md.
Schneider's - Capitol Hill

San Diego, Calif.
Keg N Bottle - College Area     

San Francisco, Calif.
The City Beer

Seattle, Wash.     
Total Wine - Northgate

St. Charles, Mo.
Fields Foods

Shoreview, Minn.
South Lyndale Liquors    

Webster, Tex.
Spec's #00

Next Round takes a regular look at new and recently released craft beers. If there's one on your radar, or if you have suggestions or questions, contact Mike Snider via e-mail. And follow Snider on Twitter: @MikeSnider