Since I've had this stout several times over the past few years and I've definitely had mixed results, I'm doing this staff review at a few different temperatures to see if some of the differences I've noticed can be attributed to different temps or if there's just a lot of variability in the beer or brewery. All the temperatures used are in Fahrenheit, taken via an infrared thermometer pointed down the top of the glass at about an inch or two away.
Appearance
The initial bottle was poured out at 40 degrees. At this temperature the KY Bourbon Barrel Stout pours out basically a pitch black with about a finger of an off white (or pale tan) head. Even a relatively vigorous pour leaves only a finger of head, and the retention is on the short side. I like my stouts to have a longer lasting head that gives a little bit of a that creamy head to the first few sips, and this beer falls well short in that regard. Of you swirl the beer in the glass, it will leave a slight bit of legs on the side of the glass, but there is no lacing of any sort left on the glass. At a slightly warmer 56 degrees, the head becomes a little bit fuller - maybe up to 2 fingers - but it's still pathetically short lived (5 seconds?) and leaves behind a flat-Coke appearance. At the warmest temperature - 61 degrees - there may be 2.5 fingers of head, but other than that, no change. Disappointing.
Aroma
At the coldest temperature - 40 degrees - the aromas are fairly one dimensional, and primarily consist of dark roasted or burnt malt. Think bitter coffee, and while there is a little bit of the oaky and vanilla aroma, so little of it comes through that it's honestly a bit more reminiscent of red wine than it is Bourbon. At 56 degrees things start to become a little bit more interesting - some sweeter caramel malt, some dark licorice, and little bit of an earthy hop aroma all start to come through. Those aromas, while nice, are still very much subservient to the strong and bitter darker roasted and burnt aromas that were dominant at the colder temperatures. The vanilla, smokey and oaky Bourbon barrel aromas are also a little stronger, and (fortunately) the red wine-like aroma is much more subtle. At the warmest 61 degrees, the licorice and Bourbon aromas become even stronger, mostly balancing the dark malt aromas, which are very coffee-like, although the overall bitterness seems a little bit lower.
Taste
At 40 degrees, the beer is overall pretty flat and disappointing. At this temperature the flavors suffer similarly to the aroma, with a strong bitterness from the burnt malts, and a little bit of Bourbon burn, but really not much in the way of flavor. The strong bitter flavors stick around for quite a while even at this colder temperature, and while it's not an overpowering bitterness, it's just not that pleasant. At 56 degrees it becomes quite a bit nicer, with some dark fruit (apricot, prune) sweetness that helps take off a little bit of the harshness from the bitter malt and Bourbon flavors and gives the flavors a bit more balance. The Bourbon flavors also highlight the oaky and smokiness and come in stronger toward the finish, giving a lighter Bourbon-like spiciness to the finish, without all the burn. At the warmer 61 degrees, the dark fruit flavors are joined by a bit of a lighter, sweeter, caramel malt and herbal hop flavors that give a little bit more of a balance of flavors (while still keeping the Bourbon quite strong in the finish).
At the warmer temperatures, this is a decent Bourbon Barrel Stout (although not a great one, at least to me) but if you like Bourbon and stouts, do yourself a favor and don't drink it cold!
Mouthfeel
At all temperatures, the body is nice - it's full bodied, but not too syrupy or thick. It's got a nice round and smooth feeling that isn't too watery, and isn't too thick.
The moral of this story - if you like the dark roasted and burnt flavors of a stout, and the oaky woodiness of bourbon, don't try and enjoy this beer straight from the fridge. Let it sit out for 30-45 minutes, or just store it somewhere cool (not cold!) and dark. Of course, if you don't like the stout or bourbon flavors, what are you doing buying this beer?!?!
