Pisgah Vortex II

Brewed by Pisgah Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Black Mountain, North Carolina USA

Serve in Snifter

Appearance: Not as murky black as I expected....more of a dark brown with cola darkness swirling within. 1 finger brown mocha crown that shows little retention but some lace. Smell: Loads of bourbon / dark chocolate goodness complimenting some deeply roasted malt. Taste: I wish it tasted more like the nose. Has a dark chocolate covered cherry like fruit quality but I wish the fruit was toned down and the chocolate heightened. Mouthfeel: Slightly thick but just shy of full bodied in my opinion. Decent amount of carbonation. Drinkability: High abv, slightly thick, and the flavor doesn’t work well for me so I’m gonna give it a low mark. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 09-12-2009

Bottle at PilsnerPeter’s RBSG 2010. Black with a tan head. Nose is chocolate, molasses and dark fruit. Taste is prunes and chocolate.

Thanks Brian for sending this my way! A-Body is pitch black and does not allow light to shine through. Pours with 1-2 finger dark tan, fizzy head which eventually fades to a thin collar. Traces of lacing are left behind in the glass. S- Nose is very strange. Lots of ripe, dark fruit, such as raisin, plum, and dates come through as well as some sweet chocolate malt but there is a really big earthy barnyard component in the background. T- Flavor is very sweet and fruity. As with the nose lots of dark fruit is there and seems to be the main character, with a sweet chocolate malt backbone. The finish adds a touch of earthiness but its mostly sweet fruit and chocolate going on. P- Well done. Medium carbonation and relatively thick body. O- I have been really looking forward to trying this one for awhile and its pretty much a let down. The fruity sweetness gets somewhat cloying and its hard to get through the glass. Seems to be a bit of a mess for the style. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 04-08-2010 14:51:44

Big thanks to my mystery Secret Santa for this one! Pours black, decent head fades away. Aroma is chocolate, molasses, touch of treacle. Maybe a hint of raisin. Flavor starts off raisin, moves into prune, then switches over to milk chocolate for a smooth finish. Hint of molasses lingers. A big beer, but the alcohol integrates nicely. Good sipper.

Bomber; thanks to Floydster for the trade; pours dense black with tan head; sweet roasty aromas with dark fruits, creamy chocolate and a touch of tobacco; full bodied and quite sweet with oranges and chocolate; pretty tasty stuff

Shared by PittBeerGirl (BA)!
Black with a thin beige head. Heavily sweetened nose muddles notes of fertilizer/earth, bitter roasted malt, and hints of milk chocolate. This sweetness carries into the flavor, mainly as sweet dried fruits in date and plum, also some chocolate. Very sticky despite the thin body. The worst impy of the evening, unfortunately a mess of sweetness at this point.

What a gorgeous brew! Pours opaque into the glass, with slightest of ruby-mahogany fringes and a diminishing brown head. The nose is of sweet malts, tobacco, milk chocolate and a hint of leather. Flavors are very sweet... malty, chocolaty, wet tobacco and chocolate milk. The mouthfeel is very, very smooth, an extremely easy quaff for such a high ABV... it’s not felt at all, and perfectly integrated. Very nice impy stout, and one of the sweetest takes on the style I’ve had so far. Simple, yet has inner complexities. Prost!

Bottle shared by hellbilly. Super dark pour with a brown head. Everything that should be there, is there. Deep roasted malt, coffee, cocoa, some dark ripe fruit. This stuff is awesome.