Harveys Imperial Stout

This was a very deep dark pour with a thin tan head. The aroma was of deep roasted malt and almost an almond or nut, coaco and heavy molasses. The flavor on the other hand was very difficult to pin down. I’m going to have to give it the old palms up and shoulder shrug. I liked it though.

2003 Dark brown, roasted malts, molasses, chocolate, alcohol, soy sauce?, spice, fruity. "sweet, sour, and salty. ??? " Strange!

Tastes of Soy Sauce. 1 of 4 beers I have ever poured out (with about 900 beers tasted so far). I fail to taste the complexity and I can’t say that I will ever try this beer again. Absolutely terrible!

My first imperial stout ever and boy did it make me jump at first. Now I can say I truly love the sherrylike taste with huge molasses and rather challenging taste that ends up nicely dry and woody. The body is so extreme it makes the uninitiated run for cover and the sediment on this big boy looks eerily like frogspawns.

Bottle 2001 vintage. Dark brown pour with red around the edges. Absolutely zero head. Smelled of a port wine or a full bodied red like a Zinfandel. Did not get much sweet from this one, some roasted malt and mocha, mostly red fruits. Full bodied, but not much outside of the dark red fruits and alcohol. Definetely a bit sour on the finish. Have a feeling this one was a bit over aged. If not than something I would not try again. By the ratings sounds like the 2003 vinatage has been received much better.

Tasted 26/07/2008. 330ml bottle from Greig, shared with Sam and Steve in Invercargill. Extra Double "Quadruple S" Stout - sweet and salty, sour, soy sauce. I can pretend to be a connoisseur or I can admit this really doesn’t work for me. It fails the second sip test, let alone the second glass one.

Bottle: Label Extra Double Stout 2003: Black colour,no head. Aroma of raisins,aly and som sournes was it in the end. Flavor was smouth raisins mouth feeling. Viny and raisins was the domintad mouth feeling. Maybe because of the aging(?) Medium body, and thin to medium rassin finish. Nice!!

11.2oz. corked and plastic sealed bottle, labeled 2001, but seal says BBE 2006 (best by?), with many thanks to Storm! Pours black with only a thin. loose and large set of bubbles for a head that disappear immediately, while a thin ring remains present, no lacing. Weirdly, the first thing I think of when I smell it is it’s a sour, with a good dose of dusty funk, dark fruit juice, and only the slightest presence of roast in the background. Flavor is also more earthy, funky and sour, along with more dark fruit juice, and some mild sweetness. Not anywhere near an Imperial Stout as I would expect it, but as a sour it’s not too bad. Seems to turn expectations upside down for me. Thanks again Jacob!