Cigar City 110K+OT Batch #2 I.R.I.S.

Brewed by Cigar City Brewing
Style: Imperial Stout
Tampa, Florida USA

Bomber. Opaque black body, oily sheen on the side of the glass. Big dark tan head, mostly diminishing. Aroma of wood, cedar, roasted malts, plastic with hint of molasses and earth. The flavor is moderately sweet and moderately bitter. It finishes lightly sweet and moderately bitter. Slightly tart, dry. Medium to full body, creamy texture that turns slightly chalky. Moderate carbonation. Much more muted than anticipated, especially the hops, in both aroma and flavor — neither overly sweet or bitter, the aroma and flavor relying mostly on the cedar notes as its backbone. Thought that was a plus for an imperial stout because this was easy drinking with a nice balance. Interesting mix of the flavors that are there.

(Sample Date: 7/18/2009 Source:Other) At Immy’s RB gathering. Big roast and chocolate aroma. Black with small dark tan head. Hefty roast and chocolate maltiness along with hefty bitterness to balance. Touch astringent. Pretty one sided towards dark malts.

This was a good beer, but it’s thin for a beer it’s size. There’s a touch of smoke in there.

Bottle courtesy of Santa! Thanks Santa!! Pours pitch black with dark tan head. Aroma is dark roast, espresso, bittersweet chocolate, some hops, and a slight sweetness. Slightly oily mouthfeel that is thick. Not as thick as other offerings from this brewer. Still thick nonetheless. Flavor follows the nose and finishes with a coffee espresso chocolate flavor this lingers a bit. There is some molasses and licorice hidden in their, too. Not hot and is a solid brew. This is good stuff. The base beer for their stout is great and is simply amazing. I could drink these all the time. Thanks so much Santa!!

Bottle. Burnt malt , coffee, chocolate. Finishes spicy (as in hot pepper spice) and bitter. Good

Thanks to TODD for opening this! Poured extra-viscous black with a thick cap of dark brown head. The aroma picked up large doses of black patent, molasses, and chocolate malts topped by plenty of hops (pine and floral primarily).. treacle emerged with warmth.. a tad spicy on the back. The flavor found molasses, charred black patent, and burnt coffee notes at the core, again surrounded by a lot of hops (black pepper, earth, and pine rocked it hard).. very bitter and viscous on the great finish. Heavily-bodied with low carbonation on the palate.. great balance between the hefty malt bill and the huge hop presence.. lots going on here, and it worked!

Inky black. Long lasting tan foam. Dark chocolate and truffle aroma. Velvety mouth feel. Flavor is alarmingly complex, balanced and intense. Long lasting finish. Profound effort. Has a malt density and mouth feel that reminds me of Danish dark beers. It has an uncommon character when compared to other American craft brewed Imperial Stouts.

Bottle: I’ve said so much stupider shit in the forums than turbo, why does he get a beer named after his stupidity and not me? Bullshit. That means this beer is starting at a 4.5 rather than 5.0. Whatever. It pours motor oil thick, settles dark with a dense brown head. The nose was a fluffy mixture of chocolate mousse and mildew with a biting alcoholic edge. Super smooth, cashmere-like mouthfeel carrying flavors of chocolate brownie & powdered cocoa with strong, aggressive hoppy bitterness. Very clean malt profile here, just a bit overly aggressive with the hops, which I’ve noticed is a common thing with cigar city. In any event, its still a nice beer...nothing spectacular and out of this world, but certainly nice.