Green Jack Baltic Trader

Brewed by Green Jack
Style: Imperial Stout
Lowestoft, England

Serve in Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

750ml bottle. Clear ruby red glowing dark brown colour with small, frothy to macropore, diminishing, minimally lacing, tan head. Dark malty aroma has notes of treacle, oak, vanilla, hints of alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet dark malty, treacle, vanilla, a touch of coffee, oak and leather; hints of alcohol gain weight with the finish coming closer; soft carbonation, oily palate.

750ml swing top bottle, purchased from Get A Round, Dereham Road, Norwich, in December, and drunk today, with a mate. Brewed 19/07/12, bottled 28/09/12, batch #58. Translucent, dark mahogany. Pours thick, brown head, which persists as a good head - very fine bubbles, nice & creamy. Light carbonation. Aroma - Very chocolatey, rich, sweet choc, bit woody, bit fruity, good, slightly piney hops, slightly citrus, nice. Taste - Mid sweet, rich, very choccy malt (milk choc). Rich, piney, woody, terpene flavours & oils. Dark fruit. Some spice. Some savoury yeastiness (marmite). Some licorice. Nice hops (some citrus flavours) give bitter balance towards end. Bit boozy. Some more choc malt on aftertaste & light piney hops. Body is mid-heavy, creamy, choc-milk, nice mouthfeel. A good impy stout, very choccy, but not as good as i remember it being on cask at the Summer 2012 Chelmsford Beer Festival (by far the best beer i tried there). Alcohol not completely hidden, but still tasty and rich.

Gravity Dispense at Merchants Inn Beer Festival, Rugby - 31/10/12. Very dark mahogony brown approaching black with a small tan head that soon clears to zero. Nose is big on the booze, dark malts, liqourice, a touch of wood and some smoke. Tastes of dark malts, dark fruits, molasses, lots of booze. Full bodied with limited carbonation leading to a boozey malty finish. A little one dimensional, too much booze which isn’t that well integrated in my opinion when compared to other beers in this style.

Cask-conditioned at the Black & Gold beer festival, the Gryphon, Bristol 2/9/2012. Near black with a tight, off-white head. Big aroma of dark fruits, roasted malts and a touch of grassy hops. Flavour was sweet to begin with, with more fruit, liqourice and some dark chocolate, before a warming, dryish finish. Surprisingly easy drinking for the ABV.

Cask at Ealing beer festival 2012. A dark brown/ruby coloured pour with a decent beige head on top. Sweet, dark fruit aroma. Tastes of dark fruit, vanilla, hint of coffee. Smooth, rich and pleasant. Good stuff.

4th February 2010
Chelmsford Winter Fest. Clear very dark brown beer. Rich dark malt with unsweet licorice. A little spice and well buried dark fruits. Finishes with some mellow dark dark fruits and more licorice.

One of the best beers I have enjoyed over many years of exploration. If you are on a session, avoid it like the plague, but if you wish to spend time savouring a superb real ale, then this is definitely one to try. Rich, malty with a complex flavour that clings to the palate and seems to last forever. Not for the girly or bland ale drinker, but a lip-smacker if ever there was one.

Bottle shared at home. Dark pour with a thick tan head. Aroma of chocolate, over-ripe fruit and slight peat. Sweet coffee flavor a little smoke. Thick and oily with alcohol warmth in the finish.

Cask, gravity at Merton Winter Beer Festival, 17th & 18th February 2012 Incredibly drinkable for the abv, smooth with some good coffee notes. The alcohol shows but it really doesn’t suggest that this is 10.5%. Smooth with some creamy vanilla, coffee is light and not too pushy. Most enjoyable stout and deservedly popular. A8 A4 T8 P4 Ov16 4.0

Bottle at home. Pours a dark ruby red almost a meaty gravy colour with the thinnest of beige heads around the edge of the glass. Smokey peaty dark fruit aromas with a hint of vanilla leap from the glass. Rich and unctuous over the palate with a little oilyness. There is an astringent smokiness with a roasty, malty, fruity taste full of dark fruit, thin coffee and caramelised meat juice flavours that continue to rise to a rousing raisin finish. With so many deep richness and complexity, this beer is ideally sipped on a cold winters evening by a roaring fire with the the light from the flames reflecting off the glass. Delicious.