Abita Select Imperial Stout

Brewed by Abita Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Covington, Louisiana USA

Serve in Snifter

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Bottle "from the back room" at Cigar City Brewing Cask for a Cause. Almost black, tan head, decent lacing. Aroma of fresh Hershey bar. Taste is sort of like chocolate soda, the kind you would get at Italian grocery stores in Little Italy in NYC. Interesting in a stout.

On tap at Lucky Baldwin’s Sierra Madre. Black with a 1 1/2 finger beige head, fair retention. Loads of milk chocolate and malted chocolate in the nose with light to moderate roast, light vanilla, and a tinge of smoke. So far, so good. Flavor isn’t quite as chocolatey and adds a salted mixed nuts component. The finish is dry and has plenty of roasted coffee--didn’t get burnt at all! Bitterness peaked at a 3-4. Alcohol slightly warming down the throat. Full body with light to moderate prickly carbonation. Solid imperial stout.

Sampled at Tyler’s Bottle Shop, Carrboro - thanks, Jason! Not having been impressed with Abita’s other "specialty" brews, I was skeptical of the praise this one was getting. Too bad this is the one they *don’t* bottle, as it was a solid and flavorful imperial stout. Hefty pour with a roasted, dry aroma that suggested beefed-up oatmeal stout. Rich and creamy mouthfeel, a bit of slickness towards the finish. Flavors aren’t especially innovative or memorable, but it was well realized. Better than expected.

Whole Foods / CCB Cask Event. Pours dark brown, tan head. Aroma is malty, roasted malts, dark chocolate and toffee. Flavors, thick chocolate malts mouthfeel, cocoa nibs, hints of roasted malts and coffee. Underlying Abita yeasty palate with a light bitter hoppy finish. Decent stout, ranks pretty high compared to the rest of Abita’s offerings.

On cask at the Whole Foods / CCB Cask Event. It pours dark brown with weak tan head. The aroma is roasty with chocolate and an assertive level of dark fruity esters. The taste is malty sweet to go along with sweet chocolate teaming up with plums, prunes and a touch of fig. I also get a bit of sweet nuttiness around the edges. It taste more like an imperial brown where the esteriness got a tad out of hand.

Draught sample at carrboro beverage co. Thanks Jason! Dark brown with small tan head, minimal lace. Nose is roasty, cocoa. Flavor is there but doesn’t knock your socks off. An easier drinking impy which is a good thing. Not incredibly complex but a good gateway brew for the style.

Tap @ TacoMac, john’s Creek. Black pour. Tan head. Flavor of roasted grains. Sweet malt, molasses, char. Finishes with a nutty, chocolate malt character, touch of tobacco. Nice lacing. Stick body. Aroma of Ice Cold Chocolate Milk. The best Abita I’ve had to date!

16-oz draft Abita Brew Pub Abita Springs, LA - Aroma: chocolate, roasty, hops; Appearance: opaque, jet black, deep tan head, lots of laces; Flavor: sweet, salty, bitter, chocolate, roasted, burnt; Mouthfeel: full bodied, creamy texture, lively carbonation, long-bitter finish; Overall: very drinkable, rich, smooth, and intense malty beer with nice dark-bitter chocolate and dry finish. However, I did not get the esters (dried fruit) and noticeable alcohol of an Imperial Stout, which lowered my overall rating. Maybe needs be aged more to bring out some of the esters?

Appearance: Pours a dark brown, near black body with a medium-sized, light tan head. Smell: Nose of roasted malts with notes of semi-sweet chocolate and finely ground coffee. Why, there’s a background hint of plums for a slight vinous fruity component. Taste: Roasted malts with a lightly sweet touch of simple chocolate and a splash of cold morningtime coffee. Plum fruitiness within. Some growing hints of light caramel as it begins to warm. Very minor bitterness. Roasty, semi-dry finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: Abita’s cooked up a competent Imperial Stout that settles on the lighter end of the style spectrum. It’s certainly nothing to compare to a Dark Lord, a Great Divide Yeti, or even a Hoppin’ Frog BORIS The Crusher, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Pours a dark opaque sable with a fine-bubbled light tan head. Rich aroma is of fine roast coffee and unsweetened chocolate with a hint of toffee. Mouth-filling flavor is oily and smoky, strongly of fine coffee with hints of unsweet chocolate and toffee. Texture is thick, smooth and tingly.