Samuel Adams Imperial Stout

Brewed by Boston Beer Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Boston, Massachusetts USA

Bottle. Pours an opaque black body with a quickly disappearing, thin brown head. Nice aroma of sweet, dark malts along with hints of chocolate and coffee. Flavor is not as impressive as the aroma, and is more of the same with an odd metallic or mineral taste. Medium bodied with a light carbonation. Charred malt finish with a slight metallic tone.

I would definitely include this in my top Imp stouts. Deep black pour with a dark brown/beige head. Aroma is very roasted with coffee, nut, and chocolate prevalent, as well as some notes of dark toffee and spice. Flavor is complex and full, big notes of chocolate and coffee, followed by roasted malt, toffee and anise. Bitterness is moderate, but does not linger. Alcohol is well-hidden. Mouthfeel is smooth if not a bit watery. Overall, a very well done Imp stout.

Pours a deep black color with a nice, tan head. Roasted chocolate aroma with a sense of sweet toffee. Some caramel as well. Nice, sweet taste. You can kind of sense the alcohol. But a sweet, chocolate taste. Hint of raisin’s too. Very sweet. Pretty decent stout from Sam Adam’s!

Bottle. Jet black with a brown head that’s slow to form and fades fairly quickly. Aroma’s a little roasty, a little chocolate. Flavor of dark fruits, some chocolate, but far too sweet to be balanced. Fairly smooth. Okay, but certainly not exceptional. I won’t be buying this one again.

black under a small dark brown head. roasty malts and sweet molasses syrup aroma. dark roasted grains, a touch of smoke, burnt wood, dark chocolate, raisins flavors. medium bodied.

Sample at work on April 10, 2009. Looks great... smells heavily malted, a little sweet and spicy but with characteristics of a dry stout. Flavor is very roasted, of dark, bitter chocolate, almost smoked. Pretty warm on the palate, and this one is best consumed that way, too. A mediocre imperial stout, but well done for Sam Adams. Although I’m an imperial stout/barley wine fanatic, I’d still drink a Sam Adams imperial pilsner over this.

For anyone who drinks Imperial Stouts on a regular basis, this one is nowhere close to being a good one. With a skunky aroma and barely anything left on the palate, I don’t believe it deserves the title, and definitely not the kind of rating that it was given. I couldn’t even finish my glass.

Pours thick dark brown, completely black in the glass, with a thin tan head, nice lacing. Smells of caramel, chocolate, coffee, plum and pine. Medium-thick creamy body, somewhat crisp finish. Tastes of plum, bitter chocolate, caramel and just a hint of licorice. Mild bitter-sweet aftertaste. Not particularly complex, but fairly-well balanced and surprisingly drinkable.