Which Baptist is the Biggest and the Baddest?

825 S. State St, Salt Lake City, UT
Monday–Thursday 11:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m.
Friday–Saturday 10:00 a.m.–11:00 p.m.
Sunday 11:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.
801.906.0123 | epicbrewing.com

What once started as a partnership with a popular coffee roaster has exploded into arguably the second most recognizable beer brand in Utah. Epic Brewing Company’s Big Bad Baptist started as an imperial stout aged in whiskey (or bourbon) barrels and amazing, locally roasted coffee. Since those humble beginnings, it has exploded into an array of deliciousness that includes offerings that are single-, double-, triple-, quadruple- and even quintuple-barreled stouts along with a most delicious varietal coming from south of the border. You can now get the original BBB in a 12-oz can, or, if you live in the free world, on draft. This year, head brewer extraordinaire Jordan Schupbach has outdone himself with a half-dozen varieties of Big Bad. I tried all six, took a nap, and chose three to pass on to you for your holiday quaffing.

Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout Tasting Primer

• Burnt marshmallow is a good thing; notes of sweet, char and sticky toffee
• Tobacco can be a good thing with earthy notes of light chocolate or leather. It can also mean ashy, which is bad.
• Soy is good in some beers and not in others, providing an umami flavor with a slight salt aftertaste. Salt can be overwhelming.
• Booze refers to heat and can be good. It’s that feeling that something bad will happen if you drink too much, which can be bad or good (depending on the night).

Big Bad Baptist Orange Stick

This Baptist took a stroll through the citrus grove on its way to the pulpit and came back smelling of sweet orange and whiskey. Notes of whiskey, orange and oak barrel play around in your nose with just a whiff of coffee. The first taste, which coats the tongue, brings lots of whiskey, burnt marshmallow, graham cracker, light coffee and just a bit of orange zest. As it warms up, it gets thinner on the tongue—or, the tongue just gets thicker—and the coffee flavors come out just a little bit more. I would have liked more orange in this one, but overall, it’s a tasty Baptist.

Big Bad Baptist Rum Barrel Aged

Arrgghhh! This one reeks of a pirate with big, huge, treasure chest–sized notes of dark rum on the nose with toasty barrel and roasted malt. Close your eyes and you’re drinking a dark rum cocktail on the first sip as that rum blows through the other flavors like a Nor’Easter on the high seas. The second sip brings much more nuanced flavors of raisin, cocoa, tobacco and soy with light roast coffee. As it warms up, the rum sticks around but with it comes more cocoa, tobacco and soy along with a little bit of heat in the back of your throat. Shiver me timbers—this is one bloody good beer.

Big Bad Baptist Barrel Strength

This Baptist is most definitely the biggest and baddest of them all. The whiskey dominates the nose with espresso and light cocoa. The first sip is straight up whiskey with slight oak and roasted malts. Let it warm up and you’ll start to get some amazing flavors of espresso, burnt marshmallow, soy, leathery tobacco and more booze on the tongue with lots of heat. This Baptist isn’t quite ready to lead a whole congregation, so send it to the cellar for a year or so and let it calm down.

I guarantee you will have the best of these amazing Baptists on your hands to celebrate the 2023 holiday season. If you grab three, go with Barrel Strength, Rum Barrel and Toasted Coconut. If you’re going to grab just one, go with the Rum Barrel. That will jolly your roger.

Read more from Steve Koonce:
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2022 Brew Olympics