 drewbeerme (1785), Chicago, Illinois, USA
Dec 21, 2006 Updated: Mar 21, 2008
2 year old 12oz bottle, pours pitch black, thick, with small tan head around edges. aroma is amazing, loads of dark chocolate bursting out of the glass with espresso. aroma reminds me of 04 dark lord but not quite as chocolatey. flavor is just incredible and full of super dark semi-sweet chocolate, loads of espresso with a wonderfully rounded out roasted flavor. nothing burnt here. the chocolate coats my palate and stays for minutes. the hop bitterness finally mellows after 2 years.
2/24/07, another tasting from a 26month old bottle and this is amazing. additional worthy notes are there’s subtle hints of smoke in the nose and flavor. the palate is perfect, thick but not chewy, full, long lasting, and no alcohol traces. flavor is lushish, dark chocolate and coffee in perfect unison.8/4/9/5/18=4.4.
5/2/07, batch 7817, bottled 2/1/07. I don’t recall expedition stout having a healthy amount of sludge in the bottle. nose has some unrefined baker’s chocolate, lots of roast, rubbing alcohol, raisins, licorice, charred wood, piney and juicy hops. flavor is pretty rough around the edges, lots of bitter roast and piney hops, medium dark chocolate, slight smoke, raisins, and licorice. wow this is really raw, extremely bitter from unrefined roast and hops. alcohol is very well hidden. body is really thick. i like some impy stout really hopped up but this doesn’t quite pull it off, and it leaves me thinking it’s sort of a mess. boy i really prefer at least 2 years age on this beer. scores from previous rating. 7/5/7/4/14=3.7.
sample date 9/20/07, batch#’7251 bottled February 25, 2006, cellar aged 19 months. nose is really toffee and roasted chocolate malts, sorta raw around the edges. very vinous nose. flavor has some soy notes to it, chocolate, lots of toffee, really rich and roasty with some meatiness too it. not as good as 2 year aged bottles but still better than it is fresh.
12/17/07, batch 8183, a rather fresh bottle. pours pitch black with small tan head. the aroma is chalk full of roasted notes, some coffee, and a big hop presence, the nose is a little raw and unpolished but it does smell great. flavor is a tad green but not much, lots of vinous chocolate and espresso notes, very roasty, and lots of piney hop flavor in the background. the mouth feel is full and luscious while the alcohol isn’t tasted. this is one intense stout. i didn’t think i enjoyed this fresh this much. 8/5/8/5/17=4.3.
1/8/08, batch 8183. man expedition stout is really like orval. every bottle is different. this bottle was far more ashy and dry then the same batch from my previous rating. still solid but this beer ranges from good to really freakin good. 3.9.
2/3/08, batch 6811, packaged on 4/18/05, so this is getting close to 3 years old. no sediment in the bottle. pours almost flat, pitch black and eventually small tan head forms and lasts along the rim. body looks slick and oily. nose is bursting with dark chocolate and roasty rich coffee notes. flavor has dark and hazelnut chocolate, caramelly, and roasty espresso finish. smooth as silk. low carbonation. hops just barely present but still adding bitterness and slight pine notes. awesome. 8/5/8/5/17=4.3.
3/20/08, unprinted batch number but I think its around 8185 or something. anyways, this batch is more roasty than usual exp. reminds me of Ten Fidy a lot. probably the best fresh expedition i’ve had. hoppy still but balanced by the big roast and its really drinkable fresh. a nice hoppy roasty licorice dark chooclate brew. again this is a beer that shows such inconsistencies within batches but if it ranges from great to amazing then thats inconsistency i love.4.2.
CaryTheDude (172), Ripon, Wisconsin, USA
Aug 29, 2008 Cellaring a few of them, but couldn’t help but give one a taste. Big in every way, with a finish that lingers and lingers, and every aspect seems to change and evolve with each sip. Remarkable beer. Challenges the Dark Lord. I’d like to try them back to back.
emerica56 (453), Bristol, Rhode Island, USA
Aug 24, 2008 The beer pours a dark black with a thick tan head. There is a nice streak or film of head residue left along the sides of the glass. The nose is a extreamly intense chocolate and roasted expresso with mocha. The flavor is so robust and has a malted milk ball smoothness on the palate. It also leaves a nice bitter hop finish that sticks on your tounge. The finsih is so creamy and full of rich coffee and dark chocolate.
Michmike (11), USA
Aug 24, 2008 This beer offers as very enticing, dark chocolate, coffee aroma. It pours very, very thick - almost like syrup. The head is almost non-existent and there really is no noticable carbonation. This negatively impacted my experience, but only moderately. The taste is diverse and explosive. A strong coffee/caramel foundation with significant hints of raisin, plum pummeled the palate as a nice shot of hops helped finish off this robust beer at the finish. My stomach’s capacity for additional consumption was limited after just one of these. I can’t imagine sticking with this one throughout a festive evening. Overall, a very good stout...
PeterLikesBeer (103), Berwyn Heights, Maryland, USA
Aug 23, 2008 Batch number 8145. This beer pours pitch black with a very small of white head that fades quickly. The aroma is not as powerful as I expected it to be. There was some hops lots of malt an little bit of chocolate and coffee. The flavor is very complex. I can taste chocolate, coffee some dark fruits and some bittering hops. The taste lingers in the mouth and there is hardly any alcohol. The Beer is much better at almost room temperature as opposed to right out of the fridge.
Bhops (195), Dallas, Texas, USA
Aug 21, 2008 bottle thanks to mar. I mean really, thank you mar. This beer was incredible. Pours brownish black with caramel head. Aroma of chocolate, dark fruits (specifically dates or prunes), roasty, smells like something that needs to be consumed, immediately. Flavor is complex, coffee, burnt malts, smooth and creamy. Has to be my favorite stout.
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