De Molen Rasputin

Brewed by Brouwerij de Molen
Style: Imperial Stout
Bodegraven, Netherlands

(Bottled, 0.75l, 2008 version) Very dark reddish brown with a smallish, firm and lacy, beige head. Surprisingly ’Belgian’ aroma with dried fruit, lots of sweetish malt, some yeast, anise-licoricey spiciness. Roasted-malty, sweetish flavor with (again) dried fruit, spices, and yeast. Alcohol is fully hidden. Quite full, slightly slicky and warming body with medium, soft carbonation. This was slightly more a Belgian Strong Ale, than Imperial Stout - or maybe it’s a hybrid. In either case, I loved it! Wish I had a case of these beauties for Xmas...

Batch 1, 2007:
I was very much looking forward to this one and it didn’t let me down. It’s a very nice imperial stout. Nice malty aroma and flavor. Could use some more bitterness, but maybe age will get that. Get one!
Batch 2, 2008:
Aroma is malty, bread and coffee. Very smooth bitterness.

In short: A fantastic chocolaty 10+% Imperial Stout that manages to remain somewhat dry and highly drinkable. One of the very good Impy Stout I’ve had.
How: Bottle 750ml, probably 1+ year old. Tasting session with Montreal crew.
The look: Dark brown body topped by a beige ring of foam
In long: Roasted notes and chocolate on the nose. Body is simply fantastic, big cake mouthfeel but never syrupy despite the high abv. Great taste. Chocolate cake, a bit floury, brownies, light raisins. Ends with a short but sharp bitterness. I especially liked its relative dryness that made it more drinkable than a beer of that gravity should be. This bottle totally blew away the syrupy and not highly drinkable Lost Abbey Serpents Stout that we opened right next to it. If Rasputin had as much class as this beer he would have never been the drunken group-sex lover that he was. Luckily for the real Rasputin he had as much class as a Clipper City Heavy Seas imperial stout.

Bottle at home ... brewed 27 march 2008 ... bottled 3 may 2008 .... bottle 476... drunk 3 october 2009 ... deep brown .. tan head ... sweet cheery and raspberry roast malt nose ... sweet cherry .. one of the fruitiest imperial stouts ive ever had ... really realy nice and the best of the evening (vs del cucato verdi and Smuttnose imp stout) ...

Cloudy dark almost black, no real head. Strong aroma of burned malt with lots of liquorice, dark coffee and chocolate, dark flowers, prunes, spices and hops. Flavour is sweet with bitter finish. Nice complexity and warming alco well balanced.

Brewed on 27 March 2008, Bottled on 03 May 2008. Bought at Cracked Kettle, number 236 of 548. Deep ruby-black body with a foamy, stable beige head. Complex aroma with coffee, dark chocolate, dried fruits, dark chocolate, vanilla, liqueric perfume. Oily, dense texture and mouthfeel with flavor of dark chocolate, roasted cocoa beans and coffee, dried fruits like plum and some oak. Strong alcohol but well balanced. Dry, liqueric, roasted and long aftertaste. Delicious stout

bottle, #65/548, bottled 5/2008, thanks to bu11zeye for this one, espresso colored pour, with slight crema head, aroma of roasted nuts, coffee and cocoa, flavor is smokey chocolate and coffee, excellent

33cl, Dutch brewery, from Slijterij van Bergen Eindhoven, very complex Stout, yet easy to drink, very balanced, hazy, good head, very good brew, yet expensive, top class!