Deschutes Obsidian Stout

Black but penetrable by light. Gentle pour raises a lasting, chunky gray-tan mound of foam. Bottle conditioned. Pleasant aroma of black licorice, plums, and roasted barley. Buried notes of nougat. Feisty carbonation settles into a blanket of cream. Satiny body. Airy and sharply roasty initially, but fluffy nougat and a moist bed of roasted grains provide sweetness and structure. Relaxed fruity esters generate just enough vinous acidity to gently pucker the cheeks and spawn an onset of burnt malts. Char continues in its briskness as the high level of attenuation tickles the palate, stopping just shy of overwhelming the nuanced malt. Despite the abundance of dry char, it finishes chewy with nougat, salty licorice, and smoky whispers of roast. Disappointing but typical that their slowest seller happens to be their most flavorsome offering. A very solid stout.

Best by 3/17/06. Thanks Chuck. The beer pours to a dark blackish ruby body with a brown head. The aroma is what I’ve been looking for in a stout. Deep chocolate, nicely roasty dry charcoal, chocolate chips, oatmeal, condensed milk. The flavor is dry roasty charcoal and chocolate with light coffee. Some milky characteristics. Dry roasty palate, lightly tart. Medium-full bodied. A very nice stout.

Pours a dark black color w/ a nice tan head & a decent lacing. Heavily roasted aroma good sweet chocolate notes hints of coffee a touch of alcohol even a light smokiness. Palate is rich full and lightly creamy. Flavor is well roasted slightly burnt malts a quite dry a bit of bitter coccoa powder in the finish as it finishes a bit dry hints of grassy hops. Some light dark fruits and a hint of grahm cracker as well. Very good stout.

Bottle via trade with kenb. Aroma: Nice roasted malt with touches of anise and coffee. Also getting a chocolate/caramel mix which smells wonderful. Slight alcohol detected, as well. Appearance. Black with no visible highlights. Tan head was full and frothy and lingered for a long time. Good lacing. Flavor: Rich, roasty flavor with some of the same traits as the aroma (coffee, chocolate, anise). Also getting some smoke. Hops come through strong, but don’t steal the stage from the malt. A bit of grassiness in the finish. Palate: Medium-full bodied with a slight creaminess. High carbonation was a little prickly at times. Nice dry finish. Overall: A good, solid stout with some great roastiness. Hops accentuated rather than overpowered. Nice balance. I’m glad Ken sent me two of these.

Onn Nitro... Nice buubbly nitro head that slowly joins the black goodness below. Very gentle smell that does not beat you over the head with over strong scents, but ones that entice you to find what lurks witthin the glass before you. The nitro gives a smoothness that unveeils the flavors before you with chocolate, burnt caramel and a softly balanced bitterness in it’s aftertaste. Having this on Nitro is a real treat for any stout lover. It takes an amazing stout and just brings it up to that...holy jeez I can’t even believe how good this is level. Great in the bottle...un-believable on Nitro.

12 oz bottle. 6.4% abv. Obsidian is a fitting name. Black color with a tan, foamy head that leaves nice lacing down the glass. Aroma of roasted barley & dark chocolate. Burnt malts and rich dark chocolate are abundant in the taste. Molasses flavors coat the tongue and there’s also a lingering coffee finish. Velvety smooth texture and goes down ridiculously easy for a stout. I can see why this is near the top of it’s class.

Bottle from Ken (kenb) Thanks! This is what a stout should taste like. Pours out a dark black color without much of a head (I’m seeing a pattern here..?). Smell is coffee, chocolate, roasted malts and sweet. Taste is similar, with a nice linger hop profile to compliment the rich malty chocolate flavors. An absolutely very good stout, nothing bad to say about this one.

very dark, thick pour, long lasting medium head. very smoky flavor, with subtle coffee and sweetness. drinking one of these is nearly a meal. fantastic stout.