Left Hand Wake Up Dead Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout

Brewed by Left Hand Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Longmont, Colorado USA

Serve in Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

Walnut husks, bakers chocolate. A banana ester aroma developes as it warms. Black body with a deep tan head. Moderately strong alcohol. Heavy body, oily texture, soft carbonation. The bottom line is: your head a-splode!

I always have trouble getting the corks out of these bottles. What I usually do is break the top part off trying to take it out, then use a corkscrew. This beer is definitely worth buying a corkscrew if you don't have one. I am going to start oak aging everything I eat and drink if it turns out this well. The beer is a dark black color with a massively thick dark beige head. The aroma is roased malt, toffee and chocolate. Big rich and sweet body just how I like them. Abundant malt flavor, along with chocolate, coffee and vanilla. The finish has the perfect amount of hops and dark chocolate to balance it out. This is a truly great Imperial Stout.

Pours a dark black, and has a tint of read to it. Decent head that calms down soon after pouring. The aroma is a decent roast coffee with tones from the oak. Flavor is indeed somewhat over taken by the wood complex. The flavor is mostly a subdued roasted malt falvor, thats very earthy and wooden. A little too much bite on it as well, but it comes with a reasonable sweetness.

UPDATED: APR 16, 2004 #600-Pours a very dark brown with a massive tan head. Took a while for it to subside. Big aroma of walnuts. That's all I can smell. Flavor of walnuts with a dash of vanilla. But where is the coffee? Chocolate? Roasted malt? Nonexistent in this beer and very disappointing both for my 600th and for 12 bucks a bottle. Come on Left Hand!

750oz bottle-pours pretty light for such a robust brew-90% opaque. Looks fairly similar to the regular LH imperial stout, but then you smell it and its a whole different ballgame. huge rocky head that was relentless. very woody aroma, which dominates. The oak aging added a very strong flavor of smoke, wood, earthy notes but still very similar to the regular LH imperial. Good, but not a top 50 brew.

3/29/04: Bottle.
Tremendous tan-brown head accompanied by an opaque black body. Minimal lace. Malty, fruit aroma with a touch of hops. Tastes include malt and hops which are nicely balanced. Other flavors include molasses, with a bit of burnt coffee. Alcohol taste becomes more pronounced as the beer warms.

Opaque black color with a tan head. Light roasted coffee aroma. Nice roasted coffee and chocolate flavors, with some sweet malt and wood. Well disguised alcohol. The flavor was nice, but not as impressive as I expected.

Black, opaque color with a very large light brown head. The aroma was pure coffee...some woodiness came through as the beer warmed. The flavor was dominated by the roasted coffee tones as well, but with more woody/earthy tones present. The feel was not as thick as I had hoped...crisp, carbonated with a wet finish. This beer was nice, but not nearly as impressive as I had hoped.

Black with medium carbonation and light brown head. Not a lot of yeast sediment in the bottle. Smells just like Kayo (or yoo-hoo), which was a chocolate drink similar to chocolate milk. The flavor has a strong roastedness with the oak domininating the aftertaste. Slightly vinous. Not overly bitter or hop flavored. A sipping beer that needs a little more mellowing/aging of the oak flavor. Very well hidden alcohol.

Roasty nose with lots of oak overtones, black w/ clear brown edges, this is a nice looking brew. It has a velvetty tongue feel and subtle chocolate & coffee flavors. nicely done.