Dry January begins tomorrow, so this beer is my last hurrah for a month. Given that, I thought I'd break out something special. Yesterday, I ventured deep into my cellar to see what I could find. Now, let's explore this aged stout together.

I'm saying my goodbyes to 2024 with Braxton's Dark Charge Cinnamon Roll. This came as the second of three bottles in the Dark Charge Breakfast Box (I have the other two stashed away for who knows when). My bottle is number 49/1000. Grab yourself a beer and let's bid farewell to this year together and in style.

Braxton's headquartered in Covington, KY (that HQ is now one of five Braxton locations across the Greater Cincinnati region). Their "Our Story" page details their early history. It started with Evan Rouse, who began brewing in his parents' garage when he was just sixteen. Since then, he's doggedly pursued his dream and now what he started has spiraled into one of area's most prestigious breweries.

Dark Charge Cinnamon Roll doesn't have a spot on Braxton's website anymore, so we're turning to Untappd for our info, like always. We're looking at a 13% ABV imperial stout that, after spending a year aging in bourbon barrels, saw a "swirl" of cinnamon and Madagascar vanilla beans. The result "...boasts heavenly notes and aromas of freshly baked, straight out of the oven, gooey breakfast goodness."

The stout's bouquet definitely invokes cinnamon roll. My first waft provides cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla. A return gives chocolate and dark fruits. There're also those big bourbon barrel characteristics (more vanilla, oak, caramel, and booze). It's a stunning nose, and one Purrl can get behind with her rating of eight whiffs.

I don't find the palate to be as immediately appealing as the aroma. I get bourbon barrel on the fore (this includes that hefty 13% ABV) with the vanilla bean. This settles into cinnamon and dark chocolate with a touch of vanilla icing as the beer settles into its long finish, flush with all these flavors and a hearty boozy burn. If anything, I'm finding the cinnamon roll to be subdued here, but that could be because I've aged my bottle more than a few years. If you tried this fresh, let me know how it was!

EDIT: As I've continued to drink the stout, the cinnamon roll flavor has blossomed. It's now prominent, in the best possible way.

Cinnamon Roll's mouthfeel is girthy. It's robust and full. This is exactly how I want an American barrel-aged imperial stout to drink. It feels as heavy as it is.

Turning to the stout's appearance (because I poured it into a glass--the bottle was sealed with wax, what'd you expect?), the head was a thin and quickly dissipating khaki color. What's left is a slight swirl of carbonation. Cinnamon Roll's body is deep brown as strongly brewed dark coffee.

I was always fond of church bake sales as a kid, largely due to the cinnamon rolls the children's choir director (who daylit as an elementary school music teacher) would bake and bring. They were delicious and the whole congregation loved them--they always sold out quickly. The rolls were cinnamon sugary enough right out of the Ziploc baggies they came in, sure. Nuking them for a minute or so, however, turned them in to gooey bites of heaven. Those baked goods are what my (now expanded, see the edit above) Cinnamon Roll's bringing to mind.

I was originally going to give Braxton's Dark Charge Cinnamon Roll an 8.0/10. But, after sitting with it and letting the stout develop more fully in my glass, I'm increasing that score to a 9.0/10. This just makes me even more excited to (eventually) break into the other two Breakfast Box Dark Charges. Happy New Year!