UPDATED: JUN 21, 2020 Bottle from Bob - I suspect I just drank the bottle in the picture, since the picture looks like Bob's work. This just has too much age on it. Dark pour. Sweet, with anise.

UPDATED: JAN 17, 2020 (bottle) clear, bright, very dark brown colour with a tall, brown head; aroma of dark chocolate, dried fruit; dryish, intense flavour with a long, medium bitter finish; watery palate

UPDATED: DEC 25, 2019 355 ml bottle poured at home. Day 23 of the craft beer advent calendar. Pours almost black with a beige head. Smells like chocolate and coffee. Tastes oily with notes of malt, coffee and chocolate. Little bitter finish. Really good.

UPDATED: DEC 24, 2019 bottle. Black Pour, small mocha head. Aroma of subtly fruity malts, dark roast coffee, light cocoa. Thin mouth feel for the style, soft carb. Alcohol is well hidden, finish is a bit thin, more strong roast, and coffee.

UPDATED: AUG 29, 2019 Decent pickup from some trade or purchase of a few years back. Coffee and chocolate. Not thick, like an IS should be. No yeast flavour to make it a true Belgian stout, but maybe that was a good thing.

UPDATED: JAN 17, 2019 Bought at BevMo for $10.99, Ursus Spelaeus is a Belgian style Imperial Stout crafted by Sound Brewery. The air reveals chocolate, roasted malt, coffee, and vanilla upon the nose while you drink. The appearance is pitch black with a finger of tan head. When held up to light, no light shines through. The alcohol content is 10%. Chocolate is smooth to the complexion. Roasted malt makes the mouthfeel toasty and creates texture. Anise is experienced with the roasted malt. Licorice is notable on the take and drawn out with the finish. Vanilla compliments the chocolate and tangible with the licorice. Espresso flavors the chocolate and roasted malt body. Toffee is noticeable with the chocolate and licorice. Figs are sensible to the chocolate and roasted malt combination. Ursus Spelaeus is a gorgeous Belgian style Imperial Stout. The pronounced licorice to the chocolate, roasted malt, espresso, and vanilla body makes this brew stand out. The vanilla and strong licorice together takes this beer somewhere else. It doesn’t exactly make me want to have another one, but it does make the beer unique. I think it is worth a try, but think it is better to consume at room temperature instead of cold. Cheers. Prost. Drink for the love of beer. For more beer reviews, visit and like my blog “Drink For the Love of Beer.”

Bottle: Poured a brown with beige head. Aroma was malty. Taste was malty and chocolate.

On tap at Barley Brothers, Winnipeg. Dark body, off-white head. Vanilla, anise, dried fruit. Rich and tasty stout.

This one caught me by surprise, the smell is vanilla, cocoa, coffee, the taste is dark fruit, vanilla, coffee, chocolate. A hint of spice, a little creamy, very complex! Because it has some much going on with its complexity, the ABV sneaks up on you. This one is a classic.

Very refined, taught, roast RIS. Hides ABV well, lots of dark chocolate and roast with an austere finish.