Great Lakes Blackout Stout

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

This is such a nice beer to celebrate 700 with. It pours to a dark brown/black body with a thick rocky brown head. Lacing is decent. The aroma is complex. Dark pitted plums, dark sweet chocolate truffles, some similarities to Westy 12 or Rochefort 10. The flavor is very nice. Sweet dark chocolate, plums, other dark fruits, nice roasty malt. Smooth, balanced flavor. This is quite delicious and definitely well-made. The palate is lightly tart with a velvety smooth mouthfeel. Medium bodied yet robust and coating. This is a damn good beer. THIS SHOULD BE TOP 50!

Opened the bottle and the aroma was wonderful. Tasted great. May be my new faborite.

12 oz bottle thanks to Santa. Dark Black pour with not much head. Aromas of dark coffee and mocha. Flavors added anise and some Dark Chocolate for some bitterness. Very roasty and yummy. Thanks Santa...

I think the standard, annual release of this beer absolutely puts the barrel-aged version to shame, and it’s good too. Pours a very dark brown, thick and totally opaque. A small tan dark tan head forms, of fizzy, fat bubbles. Great retention that eventually imparts sparse lacing. The aroma is very roasty, a comfort on frigid nights. also noted is dark chocolate, licorice, tar, coffee grinds, grains and a slight touch of alcohol. the flavor is stellar, with more coffee and additions of raisins and pleasant hoppy bitterness. Very balanced and ridiculously drinkable, this is absolutley one of my favorite stouts. The finish is chocolatey, lightly bitter, mildly roasty and very long and light. The mouthfeel is medium-full bodied, absurdly smooth and softly carbonated. I am in utter amazement at Great Lakes; they make tons of this, year after year, always so consistent with wonderful flavor. Fanstastic and always as exciting as it was the first time.

The head starts out beautiful with a lacing that clings to the glass nicely, really nice. Has a dark black color. The smell has a plum flavor to it along with a sweet coffee smell. Taste is smooth and sweet with some fruitiness. Dark fruit mixes with sweet dark chocolate. The mouthfeel is excellent, creamy and smooth, very enjoyable. I would like to have another one of these in the near future.

when you conjure pictures of a stout this should pop into everyones head. man o man what a great beer!! pouring this was like watching tar flow out of a bottle. dark, dark, and dark with a nice mocha head. the smells and flavor harken up coffee, mollases,dark chocolate,raisins marischino cherries?? maybe. all wrapped up in a bold, roasty alcahol blanky!! the great blackout started at a sub station between cow-lumbus and cleveland. cowtown lost no power but we got lots of blackout stout when it hit the shelves. and belive me it didn’t gather dust. there was much anticipation for this brew......rich man........rich....bottoms up!

12 oz bottle. Blind tasting side by side with Rasputin. Pours dark black… opaque except for a brownish-red glow around the edges when held up to light. No head. Smells and tastes overwhelmingly like bitter dark chocolate. Very nice.

12oz bottle from Drewbeerme. Pours a not too thick looking dark brown/black color with a thin tan head with just a touch of lace. Smells dark and roasty fruity. The fruity sweetness on the nose was a bit of a surprise but was very good. Tastes awesome, a great blend of the thick fruity sweetness and the roasty toasty grainy malty flavors. Sweet up front and then biting and bitter toasty through the middle to the finish. Full bodied, light syrupy with good carbonation. Best stout I’ve had in a long time.