You know what that after-dinner mint needs? Beer. And bourbon. Now we’ve got a treat worth unwrapping—er, uncorking. We started by stuffing cocoa nibs into hand-picked barrels, giving the chocolate time to draw character from the wood. Then we poured in an imperial stout and set the clock for 9 months of aging. Just before the final transfer into conditioning tanks, we dropped in both whole-leaf spearmint and mint extract. We managed to “muddle” the herbs on the drive from the Barrel Room to the main brewery; that extra agitation, says Alpha Hop brewer Nick Ison, is when the beer truly began “blossoming with mint.” Like the candy itself, this stout is wonderfully layered, toggling between rich decadence and cool mint refreshment. Age up to