Samuel Smiths Imperial Stout

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Imperial Stout
Tadcaster, England

Serve in Snifter

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Note that after I did the review, I noticed that the bottle was *just* sitting on its used-by date (i.e. a few days to go).It could be why I found it a little bit disappointing considering its overall rating here. Appearance: Very dark and opaque brown-black. Smooth coffee coloured head with lots of sticky lacing down the glass. Aroma: Strong aromas of chocolate, liquorice, and black strap molasses. Hints of caramel, toffee, biscuit, and roast barley. A bit of mustyness / damp. Taste: The first impression is of espresso and roasted grains. After this is more treacle and burnt toffee with some roasted chocolate and dark fruit. Well balanced malt and bitterness to begin with, but feels a little bit ’hollow’ by the end. Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation, medium-full body, has a thick creaminess that turns a little slick after about half a glass. Overall: Not having had an Imperial Stout for a long time, I was pleasantly surprised by this ’blind’ choice. It wasn’t as heavy as I expected, but was quite drinkable. It did taste a little bit ’hollow’, as after the first few mouthfuls it was definitely not as complex as I had hoped. By the end of the bottle, my overall rating had gone down, as the bitterness seemed to overtake any other flavours. Slightly disappointing considering its overall rating here.

Looks like a dark stout with a light brown head. It tastes of roasted chocolate. It has a good bit of Russian Imperial Stout flavor, but then also a creaminess almost like a porter. It has a medium body with a good carbonation. For an Russian Imperial Stout , this is really drinkable as it cuts off at the end. I would recommend it as an entry into the style. However, I do love it as someone who has had a few, so it's for all. Just maybe not those heavy heads into the deep deep rich flavors. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Strong alcohol and dough aroma. Nut brown pillow head. Almost black body. Creamy, nutty and chocolate taste. Heavy feel even for an Imperial Stout.

Black with a slightly brown head. Aroma: Chocolate, coffee, licorice, caramel and soy sauce. Taste: Coffee, licorice, bread, nuts, raisins, roasty and meaty. Oily texture and a bitter finish. This is a delicious Imperial Stout at a fairly reasonable ABV compared to the standard, yet it feels extremely full.

It has a pleasant chocolate and coffee aroma that is not strong. Dark with a dark tan head the clings to the side of the glass. It has a rich, creamy coffee taste.

Impenetrabile color nero con riflessi color cola in controluce; fragile cappello di schiuma marroncina di medio spessore. Al naso prevalgono sentori di cacao e malto tostato; gusto ben bilanciato tra un amaro-tostato e un dolce-caramellato con note di cioccolato fondente e fondi di caffè, finale amarognolo e persistente. Corpo medio-lieve ed effervescenza vivace, incredibilmente "soft" e beverina per lo stile; manca un po’ di spessore forse, ma l’equilibrio complessivo è lodevole. Emblematica!

Pours black with a finger of light tan head. Aroma of roasted malt, figs, whisky barrel, brown sugar, milk chocolate. Taste is lightly sweet, milky, with just hints of hops or roasty bitterness. Body is medium and creamy with soft carbonation. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

This is a strong imperial stout with hints of sourness and sweetness in the flavour, only modest dark brown head, and a black body. Good for sipping however, and not too cloying. Highly drinkable without being weak, and yet not into full molasses territory just yet. Worth a try.

Bottle. Black beer with a medium head that reduces to nothing. Aroma is a weak chocolate aroma. Taste is roast coffee, some chocolate. Mainly licorice and dark fruits though. This is good but I don’t think it is as good as the ratings make out. I don’t get this Sam Smiths love affair. Maybe its because I grew up on the stuff and its the norm for me, there is better out there.

Cerveza negra con espuma cremosa. Qué olor más rico, afrutado, a miel de caña. Sabor tostado, a café, chocolate negro, . Gran cuerpo y cremosidad. Deliciosa, mejor no muy fria.