a Hot Chocolate Chicago, Goose Island, Eater Chicago collaboration
Chef Meets Brewer
It’s Goose Island Bourbon County Stout Season! By now you probably know the story. Legend has it that this beer was disqualified back in 1992 from the Great American Beer Festival because at the time they didn’t have a bourbon barrel aged beer category. Fast forward 20+ years and it feels like every brewery has a barrel program these days. This party caught us by surprise. But here we were just weeks before its Black Friday release date, being treated to one of the best Monday nights in recent memory. GI’s landmark Russian Imperial Stout and all its variants were enjoyed by a lucky few attendees for an Eater Chicago event that paired those beers with desserts from Hot Chocolate Chicago.
Chef Mindy Segal’s dessert bar in Bucktown was the backdrop, the soundtrack was classic rock. The menu read like something from a fantasy novel. Words don’t hold enough weight to describe the experience, the entire night was a bit surreal. The 2012 winner of the James Beard award for Outstanding Pastry Chef in the Country paired her creations with one America’s most revered stout lineups.
2014 Proprietors and the return of Vanilla, aged in Rye barrels this time around
Now that Goose is in all 50 states Black Friday wont be a Chicago only affair. Cities like LA, San Fran, Dallas and Boston will celebrate and enjoy the 2014 vintage of Bourbon County. BCS Proprietors will once again be a Chicagoland only release. This revamped version is rye barrel aged with cassia bark, cacao nibs, panela and coconut water. Proprietors ’13 was rye barrel aged with toasted coconut.
BCBS Coffee was easily my favorite variant. For the 5th year Chicago’s own Intelligentsia was tapped as coffee partner. It is rumored that 250lbs of their Rwandan blend, Zirikana was added to each batch.
–Nkosi
Hot Chocolate Dessert Lineup
Chocolate Wort Popsicles
Rocky Road burnt marshmallow & smoked almond nougat, dulcey ganache, chocolate graham, smoked sugar chantilly, whisky truffles.
Bread Pudding brioche bread pudding, roasted pear & ginger ice cream, port wine poached pears, oatmeal butterscotch cookie crumble, port wine.
Apples warm apple chess tart, calvados ice cream, sour cream, caramel tuile, caramel cream.
Pumpkin Layer Cake pumpkin cheesecake butter cream, cranberry sorbet, pecan candy, spiced pepitas, butter rum, cranberry jam.
Doughnuts warm brioche doughnuts, buttermilk glaze, toffee cocoa nib streusel, milk chocolate caramel sauce.
Duck Confit & Apple Butter Cake Squares
Goose Island Bottle List
Bourbon County Coffee
Intelligentsia Zirikana coffee added. 13.4%
Bourbon County Barleywine
English Barleyine aged in once used Bourbon County Stout barrels. 12.1%
Proprietors Bourbon County Brand Stout
A Chicago-only release aged in Rye barrels with Cassia Bark, Cocoa Nibs, Panela and Coconut Water 14.1%
Bourbon County Vanilla Rye
Aged in rye whiskey barrels with Mexican and Madagascar vanilla beans. 13.8%
Bourbon County Stout 2013
Original Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout Since 1992. Chicago, IL 14.2%
Black Friday 2014 Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Jacksonville, Fla., LA, NY, Philly, Phoenix and San Fran
