BrewDog Paradox Islay (Batch 009)

Brewed by BrewDog
Style: Imperial Stout
Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Bottle
Colour is black with a sinking head. Aroma is tar, iodine, smoke and ash; smells a lot like a good islay whisky. Flavour is more tar, firewood, coal and maybe some notes of coffee. Yet it’s quite smooth and quaffable. Long after taste. The guys at Innis & Gunn could learn a thing or two from the BrewDog guys I think.

Bottle and served in my Expedition snifter (along side of the 5 & 8): Very dark with some ruby highlights and the best head of the three with a good creamy lace upon the glassware. The aroma is massive iodine, peat bog, smoke, and earthy elements along with some caramel and chocolate, raisin, coffee, molasses, and old wet wood. The taste again features the scotch character but I found this one a bit more overwhelming and seems to masks the stout malt flavor a tad too much for its own good. The finish is medicinal and ashy with only a touch of Crème Brule. The mouth feel is aggressive and sprite with an acidic finish. While I do like some aspects of this brew even the scotch drinker in me found it hard to finish the whole bottle. Perhaps aging will mellow this out a tad more. (My 200 rated Imperial Stout, heck yeah!)

Bottle. Black colour. Aroma is smoky and peaty, smells more like a single malt than a beer. Taste is a bit dissapointing, I expected more smoke and more intensive whisky taste. I tried another batch a couple of months ago at a pub in Glasgow, that one was more smoke and peat.

Nose: More intensely speaks of the sea than its Islay brother, this whisky-matured beer has notes of saltwater, toffee, chocolate and smoke. Surprisingly, this lacks the peat intensity of the Bowmore cask finished beer. Palate: The palate is oaky, smoky, salty and filled with charred oak and chocolate notes. Again, surprisingly, less intense than the Bowmore aged beer. However, it is better balanced and has a smoother transition throughout.

Intense scotch nose when cold; medicinal and not the smoothest (although I haven’t had the others so I can’t compare and certainly can’t rule out presuppositions based on knowledge of Ardbeg). Some wet paper oxidation, and more sweetness than I anticipated, but these intermingle and leave a hole in the flavor experience, especially because the body isn’t rich enough to support serious plumminess (which wasn’t there anyway). Just not all that complex, but still enjoyable.

Chestnut black. Grayish head slowly disperses but retains a fine layer of creaminess. Bright surface notes of seaweed and peat-smoked milk chocolate envelop the nostrils. Deeper hints of prunes, zingy char, coffee, and roasted malt. Touch of oxidation (papery). Soft carbonation. Airy yet rich with densely packed notes of chocolate, port and a zingy flash of char and pepper-infused milk chocolate. Islay notes of seaweed and peat smoke are forceful yet mesh harmoniously with the rich malts. Whisky doesn’t impart a whole lot of depth, and comes across as being one-dimensionally seaweedy with medicine and peat smoke overtones. Very peppery and deceptively dry. Barrel extractives unite with the dark malt to create an ashy effect. Fairly oxidized, and dull as a result. Slightly astringent due to an unsavory combination of medicine, port and oxidation. Fruity dried-plum esters impart some slickness, but are otherwise miniscule. Dull finish is plagued by oxidation, raspy smoke and peppery alcohol which lends a drying effect but fails to offset the cloying residual sweetness which lingers. As a diehard lover of Scotch whisky (particularly the Islay region), I can’t say this does much for me. Surprisingly dull, sloppy and disjointed.

bottle from blackfriers- smell not as potent as others in the series. pours near opaque, foamy tight knit head. smells sweet and strangely cola. peat smoke and earth dominate with some coffee and dark chocolate. tastes extraordinarly bitter. not hoppy. but very medicinal, peaty, and cloying.

Bottle. Black body and begie head. Ohh! This is special. Takes my a few minutes to get used to the very smoked aroma. Not saying it´s negativ! Almoust like sniffin´on a smoked wiskey. Flavor has tar, coffee, smok, wood and some dark chocolat. Palate is good, round and smooth.