Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout

Shared with Pyro. Appearence is second only to la grande noirceur of dieu du ciel... Pitch black poor with a volcanic like head... the head looks stratified, brown and very frothy. Aromas are fruity sweet to start, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, vanilla, roasted malts, floral and hints of licorice... CREAMY is one word that comes to mind the first time you taste it. Full bodied, perfectly balanced brew in every aspect. Did i say creamy?... long lasting not overpowering bitterness... for 75 IBU’s its barely noticable... the sweetness just compltetes it nicely. Added flavors of prune, plums, TONES of chocolate... In my top 5 impy’s.... Just perfect!

Bottle. Aroma is chocolate,vanilla,roastedmalt tones and a bit oaky. Sweet and big flavors of fruit,chocolate,vanilla and roasted malt. The finish is long with lots of coffe,vanilla and a really great bitter finish.

Big thanks to Zinister for the bottle. Looks really good. The beer in the glass also, very dark, nice brown head. Aroma very intense - dry and malty, alcoholic, a little bit like tabacco. The beer starts the same, strong, malty, a little not of chocolate. To the end the beer becomes really bitter, too much for my taste. Remains on the tongue very long. Not my favorite beer!

Bottle. Opaque black color with a huge and very stable brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, chocolate, coffee, some light licorice hints and a bit of whiskey notes. Sweet flavor with big roastiness, chocolate, some coffee, vanilla notes and light acidity. Finishes bitter and rather hoppy with hints of grapefruit. Rather full-bodied. Getting a bit overpowering near the end of the bomber.

I prefer this to the standard Yeti, the nose being the most telling aspect. It nose evolves within minutes of pouring starting strong with raisins and sweet, dark fruit, then adds notes of chocolate. As the beer settles, the roasts emerge, yielding an incredible mix of all three. This all happens while the scent is permeating the room. Pours jet black with the large tan head that actually fizzles (rice krispies) as it dissipates. The flavor was actually a letdown following the nose, hop bitterness probably it’s strongest and longest lasting characteristic, chasing down the sweet chocolate flavors that initially hit. As chewy a beer as I’ve had. A winner in all aspects but the taste, which is unfortunate because it starts out so promising.

Bottle courtesy of cunthaver. Poured into a snifter. The black liquid glugs out like a quart of motor oil, creating a solid finger of some of the darkest brown foam I’ve ever seen on a beer. Aroma is dominated by citrus that blends with a coconut note to create the weirdest-smelling stout I’ve ever laid nose to. A woody sprucey note is also faintly there, while classic stout aromas of chocolate and coffee make up the background. Flavor is initially sweet with some caramel and coconut, but then a harsh, ashy, charred, roasted coffee bitterness wipes everything out. Hop bitterness lends a hand towards the back of the palate, and the finish is toasty. There’s quite a lot of carbonation here, which hurts the mouthfeel here, as it over-aerates the thick body. Interesting beer and quite unique, but it tastes more like a hoppy barleywine than a stout to me.

2007 Bomber. Pours a motor oil black with 2 finger brown head that quickly dissipated into a soapy top layer. Nose is expresso, roasted malt, cocoa, earth and alcohol. Palate is dark chocolate, vanilla, roasted coffee beans with just a touch of woodiness in the background with a slightly bitter hop finish. A little bit of alcohol burn in the back of the throat, but not too bad. Nice creamy mouth feel and great, delicate lacing. This is a very nice IS.

I thought ...wow these ratings for this beer are great. While you can taste quality in the beer’s ingredients.. I think it is overdone. Too much. Might be a preference issue. Black appearance, black taste, hmmm where is this white yeti hiding. 9.5 abv came across as 11.5. Maybe I should try it again to be fair.