25 Drinks: Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout

December 12 brought me another brew that I had saved for a special occasion. What's more special than Frank Sinatra's 100th birthday? North Coast's XII Anniversary Old Rasputin Imperial Stout was aged in oak whiskey barrels. Their standard is one of my favorite widely-distributed boozy stouts.  

This was definitely a cold weather warmer. It was boozy. It was yeasty. It was roasty, It was chocolatey. It was so caramelly that it tasted like rich homemade candy at times.