 Pigfoot (2225), Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Aug 29, 2004
In a taste test by a panel of experts (me, myself, and I) between
3 "chocolate stouts", Young’s came on top as the chocolatiest, but this mamma jamma was deemed the superior stout!
Rich mocha flavor wafts out of the bottleneck from the moment the cap snaps off! Oh, this is going to be good!
The color is as black as strap molasses, with a rich bubbling, simmering, dark brown, puddingish head. THIS is STOUT! Already, it seems like a glass of melted chocolate!
Aroma is gorgeous! Sublime! Soft, creamy, yet intense with cocoa, like sticking your face deep into a bag of the stuff, but still, somehow, subtle.
Mouthfeel is powerful, thick, viscous, chewy. When people speak of smoothness as a supreme adjective for any sort of beverage, I reply that I like roughness now and then. (I am, after all, the inventor of The Gilded Platypus, a cocktail contrived of tequila, Yukon Jack, Irish Mist, and sweet vermouth!) This is what I’m talking about! There are several hurdles for the palate to play with, little bites and burps and gurgles, all the things that make beer drinking my favorite hobby.
Many flavors mingle in the mouth, many associations gather in the mind, but largely the feeling is of a burnt cognac, a hot dark rum, and licoriceleatherespressoetceterainto infinity...
Many waves crash again and again on the palate, many happy moments occur as the rough dealings of the day are forgotten and I am lost in this wondrous, darkly beautiful, and frankly ass-kickin’ stout!
tmoreau (72), Lombard, Illinois, USA
Jan 7, 2009 12oz. bottle to snifter. Pours a thick, black, a little mahogany hue as the glass tilts, with a dark tan head that diminished fairly quickly, and leaves a small ring, and some light lacing. Aroma is of roasted malt, sweetness and alcohol. Coffee and distinct hop bitterness hit you in the flavor, with the alcohol and dark chocolate following. Full bodied with a viscous texture. Finishes pleasantly dry with that touch of sweetness.
lithy (555), Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Jan 7, 2009 Winter 08-09 bottle. Pitch black pour that doesn’t appear as syrupy as many imperial stouts. A finger of pretty lasting creamy milk chocolate head sits in the snifter and leaves good spotty lacing when swirled. Aroma is big chocolate, burnt and roasted malt. Black malts and light alcohol. Taste is big roastiness, minimal chocolate, oily but not heavy, some sour notes and soy sauce comes through, with a big bitter finish.
smith4498 (459), Miami, Florida, USA
Jan 5, 2009 Pours black with brown head. Big roasty, chocolate aroma. Flavor is sweet burnt malts, chocolate and alcohol. The alcohol is noticeable, but not overpowering, and adds a nice warming element. Full body with a thick, oily mouthfeel and minimal carbonation.
pjweaver (125), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Jan 4, 2009 Blind Tasting.
Boozy coffee, aroma, hints of dark chocolate, smoke, toasty malt. Black/brown dark head. Coffee and dark chocolate flavor, minimal red fruit, mostly toasty and boozy. Warm oily palate. No real aftertaste, doesn’t seem to cling at all.
n49921 (92), USA
Jan 3, 2009 Bottle. Pours very dark. Nice tan head. Aroma was malty with a nice hit of chocolate. Taste is chocolate and a touch of coffee, can taste the high ABV too. Nice.
|
