Great Lakes Blackout Stout

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Cleveland, Ohio USA

Pours a fairly viscous and opaque black color with a touch of ruby red highlights. Creats a dense, 1/2" thick tan head which settles to a thin wisp. Minimal spotty lacing along the sides of the snifter. Luscious and complex aromas of espresso beans, dark chocolate, charred wood, dark fruit and molasses emerge along with a touch of alcohol. The mouthfeel is almost perfect; smooth, creamy, chewy with just the right amount of CO2. Flavors are a bit more assertive as compared to the nose. Loads of fig, licorice, bittersweet chocolate, espresso bean, burnt malt and charcoal overwhelm the tongue. Long, bittersweet finish with strong notes of charred wood, roasted malts with a touch of hops and ethanol which nicely warms things up. A top notch Imp. Stout.

Bottle from Beermouth. Have tasted better US stouts but i do still like it, no doubt.

Bottle. Nice one. Strong mocha and chocolate aroma. Black colour. Lots of flavour, which almost borders on one dimensional, but it just has so much nice flavour, that you almost forget about that. Lots of roasty mocha and chocolate, with touches of licorice and dark fruit. Long finish.

Aroma - A little on the hot side, aroma of unsweetened cocoa. No overwhelming coffee presence, but it there Appearance - Pours a rather thin dark brown color with no head. Flavor - Flavor is rather light compared to many impy’s I’ve had of late. Roasted barley ending with a nice warming alcohol finish. Palate - After letting this warm up, it has a nice creamy mouthfeel. Carbonation is about right. Overall - This is a very nice, lighter bodied imperial stout. More in common with an Old Rasputin than with a Speedway. It’s a very good brew, but I’d like a little more out of it.

It seems like it has been awhile since I’ve had a Great Lakes brew. That’s a bit strange since I actually live in Ohio and it’s very readily available. So much other good beer out there to try I guess. Anyway, here goes... The Great Lakes Blackout Stout pours an intensely dark brown, not quite all the way black color and is opaque. It pretty much looks black in the glass. A brown colored crown disappears pretty quickly. Aroma is rich Belgian chocolate, roasted barley, coffee grounds and cream, sweet carmelized malt and a hint of alcohol. The flavor starts sweet, like lightly roasted chocolate. Then the flavor has a splash of alcohol and sweetened and creamed coffee. The finish is bitter dark chocolate and espresso, with a final bit of dry roasted malt. The alcohol is noticeable, but overall pretty hidden for 9% ABV. Slightly thicker body, smooth, mellow on the palate. This was a very enjoyable Imperial Stout. I would recommend drinking any remaining bottles of this vintage within the next year or so... 12 fl oz bottles ("Please enjoy by OCT 01/06" 2629DL/DM) from Party Town in Bellevue, KY.

Bottle, poured black with some red, tan head on top, fragrances of dark chocolate, chocolate, chocolate cake mix in the pan before going in the oven, roasted malt, faint coffee and whiff of cherries, medium thick ale, tasted of chocolate and roasted malt, little alcohol in the background, nice Impy Stout, not as chewey as others I have tried, bottled rating is 7/4/7/3/12-3.3 .................................................. Tap at Vintage Estate Wine in Ohio, sampled 08-22-08, enjoyed a glass while perusing the beer shelves, pours black with dark brown edges, has a tan and dark tan bubbled head and looked really creamy and inviting, aromas of dark chocolate, some dark fruit, chocolate cake and brown sugar sweetness, alcohol was hidden well, it was there but not as evident as the bottle sample, flavor of dark roasted malt, chocolate and dark chocolate, some hop bitterness, mouth feel is medium or full and gave a creamy feel on the palate, mouth feel certainly not is not as thin as the bottled version, I preferred the tap much better then the bottled whether the bottle is fresh or aged, tapped is like Night and Day compared to the bottled Blackout - 8/5/8/5/15-4.1 combined rating of the two 8/4/8/5/14-3.9

12 oz. bottle, another fine beer courtesy of OhioDad - thanks! Pours black and thick with a small off white head, like liquid ebony with butter cream floating on top. Sweet chocolatey aroma, mellow, roasty malts, dark brown sugar and light herbal notes. Sweet and rich in the flavor, chocolate frosting, roasty caramelized dark fruits, ripe figs and alcohol. Full body, smooth and creamy in the mouthfeel. Yummy, I bet the BA version is just bitchin’!

An aroma of chocolate and burnt malt, under a quickly disappearing bead that leaves nice lacing, the blackout stout tastes very much like it smells with a slightly bitter hop finish. A very good beer, but a little thinner than I expected.