And we’re back with another trio of big, boozy beers from Firestone Walker’s 2024 Brewmaster’s Collective. How many of these brews are there? According to the website, a whopping twenty each year. Members get five barrel-aged beers every quarter along with lots of other perks like discounts, member-only events, and first dibs at other Vintage Library releases. If you like what you’re reading here, consider hopping on the bandwagon in 2026.

Firestone Walker Darker Ray Review

Dark Ray was a Brewmaster’s Collective exclusive in 2021, and this latest version is an even bigger, bolder homage made with almost 200 pounds of coconut, 125 pounds of cocoa nibs, and 20 pounds of Madagascar Vanilla. It pours a rich, chocolate brown with a healthy cocoa-tinged head that dissipates quickly but leaves a nice lacing in the glass. The nose is all candy bar with dark chocolate fudge, melted marshmallow, sticky vanilla bean, and coconut cream. It’s heavy and thick, almost too much to take when chilled, but things level off a bit as it warms up. That rest is important for the palate, too, which becomes less fudge shop sweet with time, revealing early notes of dark chocolate, toasty malts, and burnt sugar. A gentle bitterness lingers across the midpalate with notes of shaved coconut and toffee before mellowing on the finish with Tootsie Roll and barley sugar. Billed as “the ultimate dessert experience,” but thankfully showing balance and glimmers of the classic stout at its core. 12% abv. A- / $13

Firestone Walker Mellow Mind Control Review

A similar recipe to Darker Ray, albeit without the specified poundage of ingredients. This beer was made in collaboration with Omnipollo using toasted coconut and Madagascar Vanilla along with unspecified graham cracker flavor. It’s a double-barrel blend of stouts aged in Heaven Hill barrels, both 12-year-old Elijah Craig and 10-year-old Henry McKenna bourbon barrels for 18 months. It pours maybe the darkest of any Firestone Walker beer I’ve seen, almost tar black and as thick as motor oil with a thin, dark chocolate-hued head that dissolves almost immediately with minimal lacing. The nose is big and sweet with a preponderance of sticky vanilla, coconut cake, and marshmallow. A layer of chewy caramel hints at the bourbon barrel-aging, but that’s all secondary to the added flavorings. As the beer warms in the glass, the graham cracker note, honeyed and toasty, becomes particularly potent. While balance is a bit lacking in the aroma, it is entirely absent from the palate. If Darker Ray relied on hundreds of pounds of flavoring ingredients, this thing must have used thousands. It’s cloying and syrupy with notes of vanilla extract, macaroons, and sweetened coconut shavings. The mouthfeel is uncomfortably viscous, coating even the roof of my mouth. On the midpalate, caramel sauce and chewy, saccharine snickerdoodles run amok before a finish of melted vanilla ice cream, sweetened coconut, and an entire bag of Werther’s Originals. Firestone Walker often toes the line on these big, sweet barrel-aged stouts with finesse. This one jumps the shark completely. 13.5% abv. C+ / $13

Firestone Walker Parabanoche Review

This beer featured as a component in the latest standout Anniversary Ale. Made in collaboration with Weldworks Brewing Co. using specialty malts and aged 18 months in Heaven Hill whiskey barrels that held the distillery’s prized Parker’s Heritage release, Firestone Walker claims this is one of the biggest beers they’ve ever brewed. And that’s saying something for a brewery well-known for its boozy bruisers. It pours like chocolate sauce, almost as dark and thick as Mellow Mind Control, with a thin, dark cocoa head that leaves a nice lacing around the inside rim of the glass. The nose is decadent and effusive with boozy bourbon barrel notes: dark toffee, split vanilla bean, brown sugar, and toasted coconut. It’s silky and sweet but not too sweet. As it opens, notes of Cow Tales candy and black licorice arrive. The palate is somehow even more luxurious and exuberant than the aroma with early notes of walnut-filled brownies, treacle, and Mexican coffee. The mouthful is as lush and round as I’ve experienced with a beer, and while there is ample brown sugar and dark caramel sweetness, notes of roasted nuts, coconut, and molasses offer a welcome counterpoint. By the time the finish arrives, those sweeter high tones have dulled a little further with a gentle malty bitterness and notes of mildly tart cherry and blackberry, coffee grounds, and dark baking chocolate. Though it goes against conventional guidance, I actually enjoyed this beer more at its coldest, right out of the fridge. As it warmed, those subtle nuances that helped to rein in the sweeter elements became harder to find. And as I experienced with Mellow Mind Control, those nuances are the difference between a good barrel-aged beer and a boozy milkshake. 13.1% abv. A- / $13

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