BrewDog Paradox Isle of Arran (Batch 016)

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

Serve in Snifter

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Pitch black and I mean totally, even held up to the sun. Frothy creamy brown-burnt sienna head which bubbles and froths even minutes after pouring. The smell is intense. Mouty coffee/toffee mixed with whiskey sour woodiness and a background of leather. Hints of vanilla. Typical stout taste with prevailing coffee but less sweet than usual - in fact the sweetness is more subtle fruity accents than an integral part of the taste. The finish is dry and nutty, almost sandy. The whisky influence is present overall but very subtle. Bit like the way it feels in Irish coffee. A remarkable beer.

Black with good brown head. Aroma is a lot of whiskey and some chocolate toffees. Taste is again loads of whiskey, some wood, little bit of chocolate, alcohol and a hint of vanilla. Body is good, nice soft carbonation. Quiet some hops in this as well. Excellent beer that might have overdone a bit on the whiskey, but still this is one of my favourites!

33cl bottle. Poured a black beer with a frothy and creamy tan head. Nice lacework on the glass. Aroma is toasty, roasty, alcoholic and black coffee. Flavour has toasty malts notes, coffee, black chocolate, wood and whisky hints. Dense on palate. The aftertaste is strong and alcoholic with a long duration. Carbonation is soft to medium. Body is high. Texture is oily.

From the bottle. Pours fairly flat with not much head. Strong roast aromas. Huge flavour as expected ay this strength, mostly dark malts and distinctly liquorice. Not too sweet and a long finish. Super, one to savour.

33 cl bottle. Black liquid with brown edges and small tan head. Aroma of peat, smoke, coffee, chocolate, ash, roasted malt, dark fruit and wood. Taste is medium sweet, medium bitter, quite roasted and peaty. Medium bodied with OK carbonation and sticky mouthfeel. Nice but not very balanced, too peaty for the beer.

Bottle from El Irlandés. Batch #016. This stout appears in the bottle as a very dark mahogany color with some burgundy hues. The head is rocky and tan with good retention. Aromas are intensely malty, fantastic with notes of roasted barley, tar, prunes, figs, vanilla, leather, ginger and oak. I also get subtle espresso hints, smoked cask wood, ashes and Scotch whisky. I would love to have incense made from this. Tremendous! The taste is powerful and exceptional. High roastiness of the malts with an intense smoked character that gives way to notes of oak wood, whisky, prunes, figs, tobacco, ginger and vanilla. Sweetness is subdued by the roastiness and kept under control by the highly complex array of flavors. This beer is a sipper and new flavors come out with each sip. Smooth and full bodied but drinkable, alcohol is nicely warming and it still has some carbonation. It finishes roasty and aftertaste is smoky and woody. I would pair this with beef and spicy food. This one is one finely crafted and different Imperial Stout without excesses.

Det här är en spännande öl med en kraftfull smak som ändå är väldigt rund och slät. Smaken är maltig till tusen med smak av kaffe och några kryddor som jag inte lyckas precisera. Smaken i sig är lite försiktig tillen början men blommar ut fullständigt efter en stund.

[330ml bottle, gift from my wife - cheers!] Pours a deep brown-black with a thin tan head and a light fizz. Aroma is sweet with metallic hints. Smooth and viscous in the mouth. Muscovado sugar sweetness is soon competing against roasted malt that is on the borderline between nicely smokey and unpleasantly charcoaled. Just as you start to think that - unfortunately - the charcoal might gain the upper hand, a sweet and clearly alcoholic whisky flavour arrives to save the day. Honey and heather make an appearance, and the charcoal finally disintegrates into a smokey chocolate finish. It’s pretty damn fine in the end - but for me the Smokehead was better.

Bottle, batch 16, best before 16/04/2011, drank 28/12/2011. Pours pitch black with a thin white head. Smells peaty with some brown sugar. Tastes rather flat. There’s peat and smoke, roasted malt, with some sweetness that reminds me of raisins. Its just not very interesting. Very disappointing as I had higher hopes for it.

Shared bottle at Cardinal. Small, creamy brown head on a clear coke colored body. Toffee, whisky, vanilla, raisin, cappuccino and dark dried fruits on the nose. Full bodied and smooth to drink. Alcoholic, roasted notes, espresso in the mouth and a nice bitterness. Long roasted finish.