Highland Imperial Black Mocha Stout

Formerly brewed at Highland Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Asheville, North Carolina USA

Serve in Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

bottle, from brewery. Good aroma, bittersweet. Chocolate, licorice, banana (when cold), coffee. Brownish black color, little to no head. No lace. Bitter sweet flavor, like aroma, a bite of baking chocolate basically. Medium body, creamy smooth mouthfeel, bitter dry finish. Good, though tad hot, didn’t seem imperial enough to me. Flavor wasn’t as good as aroma, very straight foward bitter chocolate taste, aroma had more going on.

bottle. Really impressed with this one. Best offering from highland to date. Huge and malty with a nice hop finish. Alcohol well hidden.

Draft at Brewgrass 2008. Picked this one out to drink early becuase it ran out fast. Pours a black beer with a thick tan head. Aroma is coffee and and cream, with a little note of chocolate. Creamy bitter beer in the flavor. I was super exited about this one and I was suprised. Highland balanced this beer very well, nothing to overpowering. Very smooth and delicious!

UPDATED: OCT 3, 2008 Black, thick brown head. Very nice coffee and chocolate aroma. Flavor is more chocolate and coffee, and then hints of hickory, too. Very rich and satisfying.

Bottle. Poured dark with a tan head. Aroma of bitter coffee, not much in the way of chocolate. Taste is also pretty heavy on the coffee and bitterness, which is pretty nice. Finish is bitter. Nice smooth body.

Draft sample from Brewgrass. Creamy black pour with creamy bubbles in a deep tan head. Man, this was better than expected. Doesn’t go too far on either the side of the chocolate or the coffee; really hits a nice bitter mocha middleground. Not too sweet. Surprisingly delicious and unique in this category, I think. Silky smooooth, too. Look for it.

Had this at the Brewgrass release -- first beer I went for! It’s amazing stuff. Appearance: Black, black, with a creamy-colored head. Inviting, in the way that a 7:00am java is inviting. Aroma: Mocha, malt, hops. Something near the end...I can’t quite put my finger on it....I want to say almost "fishy," except it’s pleasant rather than gross... Taste: Chocolate! Nice roasted malts and smooth hops finish it off. Palate: Smooth, the definition of smooth. How is this 9.5% ABV??? Overall: Absolutely amazing. Why is this not brewed year-round and always on offer? Serving type: on-tap

Had a cask version of this at the brewery. Poured a deep brown almost black color with no head. Aroma was malty with notes of choco, coffee, and molasses. Flavor was nice. had a robust malt back bone with a hint of burbon to it. I asked the brewer if this was barrel aged and he smiled and said i should be picking up burbon notes in it. Over all this was a very good beer. Not sure the difference in the bottled version as I was told they are different, but ill let someone else enter that beer in as not to upset the gods.

Sampled at Brewgrass 2008. Black walnut pour with a sizable lasting head. Not the strong aroma that I was anticipating but I got a little coffee and roasted malt grains. The flavor was sweet but not cloying. Fairly well balanced coffee and chocolate that is enjoyable in its level of moderate intensity. Creamy full body. This is not overdone. It seems like these guys focused on balance rather than trying to shove a whole lot of powerful flavor down your throat. I enjoyed it.

(Brewgrass08) Medium tan head atop black body. Aroma is moderately sweet, coffee, some chocolate, roast, molasses. Taste is moderately sweet, coffee, some alcohol, cocoa, roast, light molasses. Sticky medium-full body.