 BeerBelcher (698), Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Apr 23, 2008
It seems like imperial stouts were made for rating; they have distinctive appearances and tons of flavor and aroma. And while this one was good, and I enjoyed it, and no doubt by the time I’m writing will have given it a good rating, I can’t say that it is in the elite of this style in my mind, compared to other beers of this style I’ve tried...still good and worth a try though.
It poured a very inky black, and was a bit more viscous than I thought it might be. Head was minimal. Aroma was coffee-ish, and very boozy but in a bad way. It was (to me) quite reminiscent of rubbing alcohol. Thankfully, that rubbing alcohol astringency did not transfer to the taste, which was highly roasty with lots of coffee flavor. Still a bit boozy (it’s 10+% ABV after all), but not in a bad way. Mouthfeel was rather smooth.
I bought this bottle from Sendik’s in Franklin, and split it with SurlySober and Flyer, who in turn shared Weyerbacher Simcoe DIPA, Ten FIDY, and Central Waters Coffee Stout with me.
jrob_21 (829), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Jul 26, 2008 Bottle back from greensboro. Pours a deep black with a little purple hue. Decent drink but as it warms the alcohol really comes through and gives it a bite that dominates everything else. Aroma is plum and chocolate. Flavor is fruity at first but then fades into a nice roasted malt thing. Except for that alcohol this is just an average impy stout.
Sparky27 (430), Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Jul 25, 2008 Bomber. Pours a crude oil black with minimal tan head. Nose is dark chocolate, coffee, toasted malt and alcohol. Taste is salty upfront followed by powdered cocoa, chocolate and roasted coffee beans. Mild bitter hop finish. Full, creamy mouth feel. Good stuff.
lumberjack (135), Michigan, USA
Jul 25, 2008 Huge bottle from The Rock...Dark brown with rocky mocha head, tons of lacing. There seems to be a lot going on based on the aroma, which includes coffee, licorice, and alcohol. Flavor is all the above. VERY thick on the tongue. For me, a measure of how good an imperial stout is is its complexity and how it tastes as it warms up. This one took a while to finish, but it did seem to get better and better and kept me interested throughout. Pretty pricey @ 7.99 a bottle, but well worth it.
mmm///beer (470), Austin, Texas, USA
Jul 23, 2008 (Sampled 7-10-08) 22oz. bottle poured into tumbler- poured blacker than midnight during a thunderstorm, half finger dark tan head formed a stayed for awhile. Aroma of a roasted malt with notes of bakers chocolate, espresso, and molasses. Hits the mouth with a heavy medium body, the malt is very noticeable but not as heavy as I thought judging from the aroma, some mild sweetness in the middle, finish has mild alcohol note. Not bad, but I was kind of expecting more...
Retorp (2148), Tampa, Florida, USA
Jul 19, 2008 Courtesy of Gilliard. Very roasty, chocolate and dark fruit accented aroma. The alcohol is up front. Very smooth and drinkable despite a being very thick bodied. The flavor is big and highlighted by dark fruit, burnt caramel, dark chocolate and roast. Very solid beer.
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