Nectar Ales Black Xantus

Brewed by Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Paso Robles, California USA

Serve in Snifter

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I found it a little sweeter, and less bitter than Speedway Stout. The bourbon flavor is there, but not too strong. Delicious beer, one of my favourite stouts.

bottle, thanks to wavers1! Pours thick black with a tall light brown head. Toast, roasted barley, and coffee round out the aroma, but there are notes of wood all over the place, and it’s so nice, I keep smelling different things. Nice roasty flavors of coffee, sweet chocolate, and barley, but the finish is where it’s at. Bourbon and oak with the creamiest mouth ever. It’s like a bourbon and chocolate milkshake with coffee thrown in for good measure. I love it.

22 oz. bottle from Grape & Gourmet. Pours black with a khaki head. Aroma of dark chocolate, bourbon, vanilla, and oak. The flavor is bourbon, vanilla, and roasted coffee upfront with a distinct German Chocolate Cake that overwhelms the palate thereafter. This combination of chocolate cake, nuts, coconut, and vanilla is absolutely incredible. There is some alcohol warming that only adds to the depth and body of this beer. This is a stunning imperial stout.

Oh my god. Bomber pours black as night with a reddish brown head. Aromas of chocolate nibs, expresso, roasted malts, fireplace smoke, a bit of licorice, and molasses. Flavor is a full woodsy roasty malty stout flavors of kona and expresso up front also bitter chocolate no signs of heavy alcohol . Body is full and finish leaves a bitter chocolate coffee rind flavor is

Bottle from dougefreeze. Thanks! Pours a pitch tar black like a liquid black dildo slithering out from the holiest of holies. Strong, in your face aromas of bourbon, booze, barrel. Taste is similar - deep black thickness, bourbon, charred oak, demonic spirits. It’s as if your limbs were slowly processed through Satans own coffee grinder, then aged in used bourbon barrels and forced upon you to drink. It’s like that. You are drinking yourself, you dark, twisted soul. Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.

22 fl oz / 650mL bottle into a tulip glass. Served cool. Aroma: Reminds me of breakfast. Some nice chocolate, drip coffee, dark cereals... There’s a lot going on. The drip coffee / malt is what I most picked up on. Appearance: Completely opaque dark brown with a dark tan head. Nice lacing. Taste: Is this an iced mocha that I have in my glass? Wow! Coffee, chocolate, nuts, toffee, nice bittersweet-ness, roasted malts, a couple of flavors I can’t put my finger on... Fantastic. Truly fantastic. Palate: Rich and full-bodied. Creamy and velvety smooth, but with definite presence and weight. Overall: One of my co-workers told me this is the best stout he’s had in his entire life, so I thought I’d try it. The aroma and appearance had me thinking that this would be good, and maybe even better than most stouts, but it was hard to believe it would be the best stout ever. The taste blew me away. There is so much going on that it’s hard to pick up everything. This is one of those beers I could drink over and over and find something new each time. Phenomenal work, Nectar Ales. Phenomenal.

UPDATED: MAY 19, 2010 Are you kidding me? This beer is ridiculous. If I could legally marry a bottle of this I would but I think my wife would beat me to it. Brown black color with thin head. Aroma is of port wine. Combination of red wine, bourbon, woody esters, molasses, licorice and mocha. Wow

Tap at Verdugo Bar. I will drink this anytime, any place. Full nose of chocolate-covered bourbon, coffee and love. Color was black with little head and lacing like a Victorian cravat. Flavor very full - smooth bourbon, roasty coffee, toffee, a pinch of dark fruit, nice elegant wood... damn. What makes this so great to smell and taste is the smoothness. So well crafted - probably more so than anything FW does.

Black ale took a second to build a brown head. Smell is crisp roast, coffee, bourbon, and chocolate. Big flavor of burnt toast, chocolate, vanilla, and oak. Excellent flavor complexity and a smooth finish. One of the best beers I’ve had.

Rich and milky, strong chocolate flavor. It's superior with its cocoa flavor. The beer also has some coffee-espresso flavor, the palate is silly smooth ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone