North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

Brewed by North Coast Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Fort Bragg, California USA

Bottled. Rate No. 1000; Black with thick beige head. Rich, juicy burnt malt flavours. Sharp, bitter, possibly over done flavours. Tannic flavours line the side of the mouth and deliver a dryness that begs cleansing. Strongly flavoured to be sure but not nearly as complex as some would have you believe from the scriptures below. Thanks to my good buddy Silk for this bottle, chris_o for his part earlier tonight in getting me to 999, and my better half Cass, who has put up with the rating for the past eleven months. Also thanks to the other wicked folk I've had beer with over the past year. You, freaks and Jedi's, know who you are.

12 bottle. cellar aged 1 year. pours pitch black with creamy tan head. aroma is extremely roasty with chocolate and coffee notes along with some raisins in the background. this is really a robust stout, big roasty notes of chocolate and coffee, subtle raisins, charred wood, and finishing with hints of tobacco. mouthfeel is a little thin but alcohol is well hidden. with a year of age the hops have faded and the more subtke yet complex notes from the malts have come out, this is really tasty and it tastes better than i ever recall.

Bottle, courtesy of gunnfryd, who supplied it to our tasting. The ABV was 9.0%. Served at room temperature - I would prefer it just a little cooler, but not cold. Pitch black colour, moderate head. Heavily roasty aroma and flavour, with notes of liquorice and coffee. A very robust and tasty imperial stout, but not too extreme.

Bottle. Poured a dark brown, almost black. Aroma of chocolate and alcohol; some roasted coffee. Taste was fairly compex. Main features were coffee, chocolate and hops. Liked the balance between hops and bitter chocolate. Very good, but not my favorite style. (Originally rated 10/11/2006 rerated in December of 2007). Rerating; aroma was better than I previously had mentioned; a nice chocolate and roasted malt. Didn’t alter my rating much.

Poured black with thin head...smells of coffee and chocolate...tastes bitter bitter bitter...small coffee taste in the finish which is dry and alcohol...

very dark brown w/ burnt coffee & chocolate flavors, not as nice as other imperials, like victory or stone. I think it was OK, nothing special

Sampled on 11/29/2006 at the November meeting of the Junedale Beer Klub. Brought by tmagee... Tasting notes: Pours dark chesnut/mahgony color with a beige head. Some lacing. Aroma reminds me of sherry. Stong pine/resign hop bitterness. Lots of warm alcohol in the finish. Smooth and creamy on the palate. Rating: 8 4 7 4 15 = 3.8.

I went to a friend’s house on 2/04/2007 for a Super Bowl party and to my surprise he had a keg of Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout! From the tap, this beer is a very dark brown color with a dense, creamy tan head. There is a lot of roasted malt with some coffee and dark chocolate in both the aroma and flavor. There is even a very faint hint of smoke in the aroma as well. The finish is slightly more dry than the main flavor with some lingering nuttiness. Roasty, balanced bitterness. The alcohol is pretty much completely hidden. The palate and mouthfeel are thick, creamy, and robust. This beer is even better on draught! Quite a treat, to say the least, at a Super Bowl party! New rating: 8 4 8 4 17 = 4.1.

A classic violent stout. Coffee notes in aroma. This brew is extremely good and creamy. Quite sour, but still a nice stout.