Perennial Artisan Ales - Prodigal (2024)

Perennial Artisan Ales Prodigal is packed with darkly roasted chocolate malts, has a celebratory 11.5% ABV, and is just loaded with vibrant chocolate and vanilla character throughout. For us, it’s one of Perennial’s best releases that is just so unique and well rendered it’s tough to talk about any other chocolate-vanilla stout attempts without referencing this one. It’s just that good.

Perennial’s Prodigal stout pours a deep, opaque black, capped with thick, creamy, medium-brown foam, that lingers on. This one’s clearly a serious stout with modest retention of foam and a good amount of lacing left around the perimeter of our glasses. This imperial stout is impressively full-bodied, with a viscosity similar to Perennial’s 17 Mint-Chocolate Stout. It has the appearance and feel of a nightcap beer, which is definitely welcomed by us.

The aromatics here are deliciously rich and dominated by dark chocolate, with hints of roasted coffee beans, enveloped by the warmth of vanilla. The chocolate notes are intense and reminiscent of Dutch cocoa powder and dark chocolate truffles. The vanilla adds a slight dessert-like quality to the aroma, enhancing the overall complexity, without getting lost in the mix. We spent a lot of time with the aroma on this one and weren’t disappointed. The chocolatey base imperial stout seems like it would be an incredible beer on its own—but the addition of vanilla beans push this stout up a few levels. The further we dive into the aromas, the more we discover – deeply roasted malts, caramelized brown sugar, dark earthy notes, and hints of dried black fruit.

We here at the Rare Beer Club are pretty fond of imperial stouts year-round and look forward to having them as often as possible. The velvety smooth and decadent Perennial Prodigal engaged us right away and the first sip revealed layers of dark chocolate flavors, with bittersweet cocoa upfront, followed by deeply roasted maltiness. The vanilla is not overpowering but provides a warm, slightly sweet undertone that balances the bitterness of the chocolate. As it warms, the vanilla becomes more pronounced and acts as a complement to the chocolate, adding depth and layering to the flavor profile.

The Perennial Prodigal has without doubt a hefty imperial stout base here, and the overall impression is full-bodied and luxurious. It has a creamy texture and mousse made up of fine bubbles allowing the flavors to linger on the palate. The mouthfeel is smooth and well rounded with a lengthy finish which carries the chocolate and vanilla notes all the way to the end. The core expression conjures fine-tuned layers of dark chocolate. Underlying complexity and roast from the stout’s darker specialty malts provide a lot of additional character as well as hints of licorice, toffee, leather, and dark brown sugar. Subtle, tiny-bubbled carbonation provides some welcome lift, as does a touch of warming alcohol. Not surprising given the 11.5% ABV, and most of that warmth gets tucked in seamlessly with the vanilla. Since this is a Rare Beer Club exclusive, the quantity available is extremely limited, so stock up as it will sell out fast.The Perennial Prodigal has without doubt a hefty imperial stout base here, and the overall impression is full-bodied and luxurious. It has a creamy texture and mousse made up of fine bubbles allowing the flavors to linger on the palate. The mouthfeel is smooth and well rounded with a lengthy finish which carries the chocolate and vanilla notes all the way to the end. The core expression conjures fine-tuned layers of dark chocolate. Underlying complexity and roast from the stout’s darker specialty malts provide a lot of additional character as well as hints of licorice, toffee, leather, and dark brown sugar. Subtle, tiny-bubbled carbonation provides some welcome lift, as does a touch of warming alcohol. Not surprising given the 11.5% ABV, and most of that warmth gets tucked in seamlessly with the vanilla. Since this is a Rare Beer Club exclusive, the quantity available is extremely limited, so stock up as it will sell out fast.

Perennial Prodigal is built to mature gracefully over the next six to 12 months, perhaps even longer, if you’re patient. With its chocolate and vanilla core, we definitely recommend this with your favorite chocolate and vanilla desserts, but is perfectly acceptable with grilled burgers and sausages, bbq ribs and chicken, or on its own. Cheers!

The Rare Beer Club has been looking forward to securing something special again from Perennial Artisan Ales in St. Louis, Missouri for over three years. This month we are happy to present Prodigal, 2024 version: an imperial milk stout made with chocolate and vanilla. This new 2024 batch is a re-imagining of a beer brewed a few years ago under the same name, but Perennial has redesigned the recipe, and the beer now includes cacao nibs and vanilla. This beer is being made exclusively for the Rare Beer Club, with 750-ml bottles distributed only by the Rare Beer Club and Perennial’s tasting room.

Perennial Artisan Ales opened its doors in September 2011. Phil Wymore is Perennial’s brewmaster and co-founder, and brought his experience from working at Goose Island Beer Co. and Half Acre Beer Co. in Chicago. Phil got started at Goose Island as a brewer back in 2006, eventually ascending to the role of Cellar Manager, where he managed various fermentation processes and their renowned barrel-aging program. That’s a pretty solid pedigree. When Phil signed for a year-long stint as head brewer at Half Acre for the brewery’s opening year, he brought along deep experience from Goose Island into a job arrangement that would allow him to learn the financial side of things better—with the plan always being to head off on his own. In 2010, he moved back to Missouri to start Perennial.

The St. Louis brewery takes much of its influence from Belgian and American craft brewing cultures, with the first recipe Phil brewed for Perennial being Hommel Bier: pulling in classic Dupont yeast and combining it with biscuit and aromatic Munich malt, as well as Columbus, Mt. Hood and Cascade hops from the Pacific Northwest. The focus from the beginning has been hand-crafted, small-batch releases that are built for the discerning beer geek. Perennial uses local, seasonal and organic fruit and other special ingredients as often as possible, while their barrel-aging program (not surprisingly) includes a wide range of wine and spirit barrels. Some of their more popular releases include Suburban Beverage, a stellar gose-style ale with Key lime, Meyer lemon and Valencia oranges, and Abraxas, their award-winning imperial stout that’s packed with contributions from cacao nibs, vanilla beans, cinnamon and ancho chiles.

For those near the St. Louis area, consider visiting Perennial’s Brewery and Tasting Room for a better look at what this brewery is all about. They offer an incredible diversity of beers on draft and bottled, with the tasting room currently open Wednesdays through Sundays and offering a rotating, beer-inclined menu that highlights local producers. More about Perennial Artisan Ales and the delicious things they’ve been up to can be found at perennialbeer.com.