Eel River Ravens Eye Imperial Stout

Brewed by Eel River Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Fortuna, California USA

smells very malty, and a little fruity. totally opaque black/brown with a brownish/beige head, looks very tasty. tastes smoky and sweet, a little like a campfire. body is a little flat though. it starts strong, and peters off quickly. i desperately want more flavor past the initial tasting. aside from that this is tasty concoction, and i’m a little biased towards the badass label.

Black with an off white head. Aroma is very, very malty, raisin, prune juice, so much prune juice, eh. Taste is light caramel, prune juice, light roastiness, light cream. Why do brewers make organic beer so shitty?

Pours black with a small light creamy tan head. Aroma is heavy on the chocolate and molasses. A bit of nuttiness and burnt toast malt note. Flavor stars with a very rich chocolate malt sweetness, almost to the point of pushing away any other flavors. A bit of dark chocolate bitterness comes out towards the finish with some creamy caramel and toffee notes. Medium body which is not good for a imperial stout and cloyingly active on the carbonation. Not a bad beer but definitely not a top tier IS

Imperial stouts have their detractors, people who think they don’t deserve the constant accolades they get through more often than not gathering the best score of a brewery’s range. Here is food, a weapon for such people. A sweet and absurdly simplistic beer which is just bigger and not necessarily better. It’s still tasty, which makes it hard to give it under a 2, but do that with a pale lager and you’ve got a low scorer. Not very dark at all. Sweet and chocolatey simplicity paired with timid roastiness which fails to balance. Generic soft bubbles, medium bodied at best and even slightly vegetal in the finish. Timid in every facet. I’m sorry, but I can hardly believe that this is among the best beer this brewery produces.

Bomber from Sam’s in Downers grove, Illinois: This pours an opaque dark brown with some clear mahogany at the edges. The yellowed tan head quickly collapses to a film, then a slender ring. It has aroma of burnt malt, cold coffee, anise, and a smidgeon of bittersweet chocolate. This seems a bit thin for an Imperial Stout, but that’s almost refreshing after the many heavy, syrupy brews that I’ve had lately. The flavor reflects the aroma except that there’s a touch of buttery dark toffee in there and finally a hit of the strong ABV. The finish is darkly sweet with a low alcohol burn. Okay.

~Pours black with creamy off white head. ~Nice coffee and malty scent. A bit mild though. ~Sweet malt flavor, some bitter chocolate. Way too sweet. ~Rich creamy feel. Bitter finish. ~Good promise on this one. Just way too sweet for me.

black, opaque, no bubbles, small dark brown head. really sweet aroma of chocolate and molasses, tar, maybe a hint of cinnamon. flavors of chocolate, espresso. really dark and good. creamy palate with a medium body. long lingering bitter espresso finish. really impressed with this one.

Pours a very dark brown/black color with some ruby hints that show up when light shines through. The head on the beer is thing and tan colored. Aroma is heavy of dark roasted malt, lots of prune and raisin sweetness present as well as a small amount of chocolate. Flavor begins with a pretty some dark roasted flavor and quickly moves into a sweet dark fruity flavor that lasts through most of the rest of the tasting and ends with a light chocolate hint. The beer feels pretty smooth and creamy with your mouth due to the perfect carbonation. Overall the beer was good but it has nothing really to excite or deter one from trying it out, just an average beer.