Bomber. Nose is slightly sweet, sultry dark chocolate, oily with hot alcohol fumes reminiscent of spiked truffles, plums and light brandy, tar and brown sugar at the back, rotting cherry, good slick roast and all kinds of cool burned and scorched notes. Viscous motor oil pour with a large and dense, jiggling light brown head. Smooth, very airy feel in the light body, moderately sweet (though the aftertaste is sweeter than that of most beers), roast and chocolate are almost all of what remains but they’ve started to slowly fade into the wall. Quite smooth, velveteen, deft hints of minerals but the fruitiness is muddled. Alcohol not nearly as prevalent in the mouth. A good offering, on the whole, different than most oatmeal stouts, bigger contribution from the yeast.

2013.04.08 - McNeills Oatmeal Stout - bottle about 4 months old (to me). Aroma: Oats, a bit of vanilla maybe, roasted barley. Appearance: Pours > 40 on SRM scale. Really dark and opaque. Typical stout caramel tan head of average size and longevity. Taste: exactly what you expect from an oatmeal stout, I reckon, however there is a bit of tartness like a cherry taste almost. Palate/Mouthfeel: medium body, not light but not super heavy. Pretty good, not remarkable, would be better with a bit less of that tart sourness. Aroma 7/10, Appearance 4/5, Taste 7/10, Palate 3/5, Overall 13/20

Bottle. Pours black with tan head. Nose/taste of roast chocolate malt, flaked oats, flaked barley and hints of vanilla. Lots of up front roast on the nose. Taste has some burnt barley and malt in the forefront. Medium body.

Bottle shared at the Richmond Industry Gathering. Gusher. Pours a dark brown color with a huge brown head. Good head retention. Aroma of oats, cherries and roasted malts. The taste is roasted malts, oats, nuts and a hoppy finish. Medium bodied, chewy texture. Seems a little off, which is a shame as it’s otherwise an excellent beer.

Ok this was an infected bottle, but I am rating it anyway - their fault for selling an infected beer +++ Sampled from a 22 oz brown bottle this beer poured thick black and oily with a medium sized creamy very dark brown head. The aroma was strong cocoa, anise, port wine and vanilla. The flavor was bitter vinegar and port wine - obviously infected - with undertones of toasty malts and vanilla that hint at what could have been a decent beer sans infection. Long bitter vinegar, port wine and toasty vanilla finish. Full bodied and creamy. I have a feeling i would have liked this one if not for the infection.

Dark brown/black color; Medium slightly creamy body; Aroma of toasted malt, nice chocolate, & some coffee; Flavor of slight roasted malt, oats, chocolate, and some hops; Finish is a bit sour; Overall, weird aftertaste - bad bottle?

Location: 22 oz bottle from Buy Rite, 10/9/12

Aroma: The nose has some roasted malts, coffee, a little oatmeal, and some sweet undertones
Appearance: It pours a dark brown-black color with a very small brown head and minimal lace
Flavor: Tastes similar to the nose, roasted malts, coffee, has some underlying anise, and a hint sour
Palate: The body is medium, it has a fairly smooth feel, and a dry, somewhat lengthy finish
Overall Impression: I don’t have a ton to say about this one. It wasn’t really a stand-out for me. I didn’t find it to be special, just fine, but not special.

Aroma of coffee, chocolate, malts. pours black with thin tan head that lasts with some lace. Initial taste of chocolate, coffee, leather, somewhat thin and watered. then sour milk hits like a ton and stays on the palate, don’t know but suspect spoiled beer here, but reading other reviews I just don’t know because it’s good up front but awful towards the finish, I’ve never had anything like that. This brewery hasn’t lived up to the hype for me on any of their brews.

Gusher - 22oz. bomber gifted by bro-in-law. Big brown head on this bottle that even started working its way out of the bottle. Black pour that was thick and some flakes settled to the bottom of the glass. Aromas were subtle coffee grounds, malt, dark chocolate. Mouth was very smooth, creamy and full bodied. lt to avg carbonation. Definitely wait until this one warms a bit, that’s when then milk chocolatey malts shine through. Notes of espresso, dark chocolate, oatmeal and milk sweetness - nice balanced hops in the finish. Very nice overall.

I poured half into a glass. The other half is still on my kitchen counter. I have a hard time bringing myself to throw beer away, but I also have a hard time drinking this. It’s sour, I assume from infection. I’d hate to think this was the intent. I’ll re-rate another batch.