Lion Stout

Brewed by Lion Brewery (Sri Lanka)
Style: Foreign Stout
Biyagama, Sri Lanka

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

This is a great stout and, for me, it fits the Foreign/Export style quite well. Lion Stout pours wall to wall black with a creamy beige head. The aroma is cacao nibs, cocoa, coffee and a sharp fruitiness - apricots, strawberries, grapes - that differentiates it from most imperial stouts. The fruit notes come through in the flavor with a refreshing acidity. The beer starts sweet with cocoa and coffee and finishes with acidity and smoke. It’s quite easy to drink. The creamy mouthfeel helps, as well. This beer has a lot of roasted malt character and manages also to be refreshing. Great stuff.

Can at Sheffield’s. Pours a deep reddish black. fluffy head. Nose is plums, tin, roasted grains and alcohol. I get some light molasses as well. On taste, more dark fruits and a kiss of ethanol that pulls in the style. Light hop character that is overwhelmed by the molasses and dark fruits. Decent.

Bouteille. Une fois versé dans le verre, le liquide se révèle noir opaque et se coiffe d’une mousse mocha abondante. Le nez est fascinant : céréales maltées torréfiées, chocolat, café fort, caramel au beurre et houblon. Les saveurs sont toutes aussi riches : cacao, toffee, touche de fumée, touche d’alcool. Sous le palais et sur la langue, cette version laisse une empreinte agréablement huileuse malgré sa densité moyenne. Arrière-goût persistant de grains rôtis. En résumé, toujours agréable.

330mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a tan head that settles to a ring. Aroma of roast, chocolate, coffee, molasses and some hops and alcohol. The flavour is reasonably well rounded, with the sweetness balanced equally by the alcohol and bitterness. Flavours of chocolate, coffee and nuts. Medium bodied, average carbonation and creamy with a roasty finish.

Pours black and creates a light brown head with big bubbles. Aroma is dominated by really dark bread, kind of like russian style sourdough bread, sweet wort and coffee. Also some caramel and chocolate. Has a light smoky note as well. A little bit sweet. Too much alcohol comes through though.

Bottle 62,5 cl. Pours pitch black with a medium tan head and a sweet aroma of cherries. The taste is pretty sweet, with cherries, coffee with sugar, roasted malts and some bitter hops. A nice stout.

Tap. Close to black with light beige head. Aromas of coffee, cocoa, and pretzels. Flavors of cocoa, coffee, pretzels, and potatoes. Not too sweet or dry.

Bottle (in Australia). Whoa...chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate. It drank well, but it was a bit hard to get past all that chocolate, so lacked balance for me.