Rum barrel-aged beer is rare as a pearl in a clam shell. That’s because distillers often re-use rum barrels until they fall apart. We’ve heard stories of brewers stuffing toothpicks and crayons into leaky seams so that the beer won’t seep through.

And yet, the bawdy brewers at Santiam in Salem, Oregon, are using these finicky barrels to their fans’ delight. When they released a coconut-infused Rum Barrel Aged Pirate Stout, Dark Beer connoisseurs became rowdy as pirates: they awarded it a 2017 Oregon Beer Award.

When Santiam debuted the limited-edition 100% rum barrel aged and boozier version, Pirate Stout Govna’s Reserve, Oregon’s timbers really shivered.

With one taste of this 2018 Vintage Pirate’s Stout Govna’s Reserve you’ll taste why Santiam’s barrel risk pays off. This 11.5% ABV Govna’s Reserve is further aged with real coconut for over 6 months. Drink it and imagine relaxing on the sunny deck of a tall ship moored in the Caribbean: the smell of Bourbon, a first sip of caramelized coconut flakes, and a suggestion of cinnamon-spiced toffees.

This 100% rum barrel-aged, boozier, richer version of Pirate Stout comes along once a year, it’s so rare that you’ll need a treasure map to find it in the Pacific Northwest. Are you going to let this taste trove sail by? Har, har, hell no!

Rated 4.09 on Untappd