BrewDog Paradox Islay (Batch 009)

Bottle. Pitch black colored. Peaty, malty aroma. malty sweet flavor with dark chocolate and peat. Almost salty, like a fresh sea breeze. Hint of licorice. Iodine in aroma and flavor. I just love Islay malt and combined with this Imperial Stout, that makes it a happy marriage.

Bottle. Rich brown beer with a light tan head. Whiskey, peat, smoke aroma. Malty, whiskey flavor with peat and smoke. Medium-plus bodied. Caramel malt lingering with peat and smoke. A bit of caramel, otherwise scotch dominates... but nicely.

330ml bottle, Edition 009 best by 22/03/09. Pours dark brown in color with thin brown head. Aroma smokey, roasted coffee and chocolate. Taste strong smokey and roasted coffee with bitter oak finish.

Pouirs burnt sienna with 2-finger dark brown head. Nose is complex; a mix of charred molasses, figs, peaty earthy malt, brown sugar, hops, and oats. Tastes roasty dark malty, with notes of chocolate, fig, prune, peaty earthy scotch, hops, and blackstrap molasses. Very rich palate with a nice creaminess and a mix of velvety chocolate and rauchy malts. One of the more unique and enjoyable beers I’ve had all year.

Magic Dave bought this round. The aroma smells heavily of charred wood and smoke. In fact it smells like a freshly doused campfire. Hints of chocolate, seawater, soy and roasted meats follow. This does not entice me. The body is a full black and it holds a well formed, thumb thick, tan head that leaves behind excellent clingy lace. HUGE smoke and peat flavors. I mean to the point that all you get is charred wood and peat smoke. Some mild salty notes int he finish. The merest hint of dark fruit and chocolate in the far finish. I could see some freaks loving this. I do not.

Bottle from Ledgers. Edition 009/BB 22/03/09. Near opaque black color with ruby clarity at the edges. Head was ephemeral. Really strong aroma of oily dark roasted malt. Not burnt/’toasted. Just really dark. Full bodied with creamy carbonation. The flavor is like burnt oak, phenolics, burnt malt, and those are the weak points. It seems that "liquid smoke" has been introduced. This stuff could clean weld sputter. It’s very smooth, and the strongly harsh characteristics quickly lull the senses. Suddenly a little heat can be noticed. It all tends to tone down in the finish, but it is still the strongest ale statement I can recall. Comparison: This is espresso, and all other is decaf. It is just amazing what man can do with malt and yeast. Postscript: Imperial stout? This is a whole new category.

Bottle. [thank you, cgarvieuk]
Pours motot oil black with a big, creamy cappucino head. Light lacing and fine duration. Aroma is powerful, peity, oak and whiskey with some roasted malts behind it. Quite high carbonation, perhaps a bit light for 10 %. Flavour is a bit sharp, lots of peity notes, vinious. Grassy and peity finish that stays for quite some time. Again, the Islay really isn’t me.

330ml Bottle: Aroma of whiskey, burnt malts, smoke, peat, and a little chocolate. Poured black in color with a small, creamy, rocky, dark tan head that lasted throughout. Opaque. Good to very good lacing. Lightly sweet flavor. Tastes of whiskey, peat, smoke, wood, alcohol, and a little chocolate. Medium body. Oily, slightly dry texture. Soft carbonation. Smokey, peat, and whiskey finish.