Nectar Ales Black Xantus

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

Serve in Snifter

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Tap at the blind tiger. Great beer. Aromas of milky chocolate, expresso, and a hint of grass. Taste is sweet, with very long length. Palate is syrupy and rich, full bodied. Black, with no head.

Chocolate, coffee and toffee nose mix with a rich bourbon barrel aroma. Fruity with plum and raisin that finishes smooth with the bourbon flavor. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Solid black, frothy brown head. Aroma of molasses, leather, tobacco, soy, some bourbon, coffee. Taste is sweet but has a lot of earthy bitterness to balance, nice thick texture. An awesome beer, this made the Berserker after this seem lacking and thin.

I’ve had this beer on tap a few times this week at The Davis Beer Shoppe. There is no mistaking that this beer is barrel aged and has loads of coffee added to it. It’s definitely not short on complex flavor. This has quickly become one of my favorite Imperial Stouts.

Roasted carmel and coffee aroma,a hint of maple syrup. The black patent malt is apparent. I would like a bit more hops in the aroma, though. Flavor is quite sweet, with some bitterness coming in at the end. Very dark and opaque, not much head. Good mouth feel, but could use some more carbonation.

22 oz bottle from bevmo. -actually 11% abv, not 13%!!!- very nice pour, a very nice thick dark brown head slowly rises out of what at first appears to be a flat, viscous, black syrup. beautiful. smell is very porter like with lots of roasted, but not burnt, malts. great notes of oak and bourbon, not subtle, but not overpowering. notes of nice fresh anise crusted bread, nice yeast profile in the nose, it for some reason keeps giving me hints of both porter and pilsner in regards to the yeast(?) but i appreciate it. the nose really opens up a lot as it warms up, take note towards the end of the glass more than the beginning in this regard. the palate is spot on, very full, bold body, very creamy, rich mouthfeel, super smooth all the way through, never unpleasant or too much at any point. very velvety, can’t imagine it getting much better in this department! the taste is a menagerie of sweet and bitter notes, its notable that the bitter part of the flavor profile is achieved without resorting to a burnt or coffee-like aspect. the coffe is present, but in a very true form, nice and subtle and exquisite. therefor the aftertaste is not dominated by an oily burnt coating, but rather a harmonious blend of subtle contrasting flavors that are found when sought. nice vanilla extract touches make brief appearances, and even a truffle or two shows up from time to time. great offering, i am impressed!

22 oz bomber from my great buddies at Country Club Liquors! Thanks for getting this for Jake and I! Just crack the cap and an awesome aroma rolls forth! Nose is sweet flowers, light oaky vanilla, chocolate, licorice, and a whiff of coffee. Pitch black with a one finger cinnamon tan, lightly lacing head. Flavor has a little bourbon up front with vanilla, coffee, and some lightly smokey, roasty nuts! Finish shows some very light bitterness showing up after some light alcohol warmth! Excellent shit! (Sorry I forgot Shit was deleted)

UPDATED: DEC 28, 2009 Rich stout complemented by strong barrel and coffee flavors. Excellent mouthfeel. This stout is the best barrel-aged example in my opinion, because it isn’t overpowered by bourbon. The wood comes through in just the right places. Perfect.

Bottle from Monument in Concord, CA. Pours pure black with a low tan head. Aroma is smooth, dark toasted malt. Somewhat smokey. Underlying chocolate. Full bodied with fine carbonation. Flavor is heavy, smooth chocolate with a light hint of smoke. It is so smooth. And always the burnt malt. It just gets better & better.

This stuff is great! I get vanilla, bourbon, coffee, and some chocolate aromas. The Flavors are fantastic, and well balanced. It has a mild bourbon taste, with coffee and alcohol jumping out at you. Not too sweet, thats what I like! Great mouthfeel. A little burn in the finish. I could live on this. If it smoothes out with some age, it would be even more amazing! I have had three bombers so far, and will buy any more i can find.