Saranac Imperial Stout

Brewed by Matt Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Utica, New York USA

Bottle; poured pretty dark and thick. Small to medium sized brown head that formed toward the end of the pour. Aroma of cocoa, roasted malt, and almost citrusy hops. Palate was nice and soft. Flavor was initially very roasty. Chocolate emerged; bittersweet. Strong alcooal and fruit notes also were present. Surprised by the alcohol taste, given the percentage. I think that it holds up well against most of the style.

Slightly muted, but nice, smelling aroma that features black chocolate, treacle, burnt molasses, burnt malt, espresso and steeped prunes and figs. Very nice range even if it doesn’t blast the nose with concentration. The body is a deep full black and it holds a very lasting, two fingers thick, mocha colored head. Very nice looking beer. Rich dark chocolate, fairly high hop levels, burnt/roasted malt, massive dark fruit under tones. Lightly sweet and metallic edged toward the finish. Has a long and beautiful burnt/charred chocolate finish. Much better than many "limited release" fancy pants Imperial Stouts. Saranc deserves props for making an affordable, kick ass, beer. Nice!

(bottle - 12 oz) Dark black pour with a thick and lasting brown head. Aroma is surprisingly light and roasty with some good chocolate and coffee notes. Some alcohol, but not much. Flavor is strong and heavy with a lot of roasted malts, dark fruits, alcohol, and coffee. A light hop touch. Finishes very clean and leaves a slight hoppy and dark aftertaste.

Last one on the shelf, just a neck label. Twist off cap for imperial stout pleasure, if you can call it that. Fragrance of alky sweet licorice. Looks really really black but there is no scum on the bottom of the bottle. Rude bitter dark coffee and bitter dark chocolate flavor with a no fizz palate. Overall, as good as any other imp stouts. Thick alky laced dark beer. Over the top. It’s difficult for me to distinguish within this style. I bet this is one of Sary’s higher rated brews. Offensive and barely drinkable, as with most impy stouts.

Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer poured a black color with a small dark brown head. The aroma was bitter, roasty and had a moderately strong sweet chocolate element. Very nice aroma but a bit faint. The flavor was bitter, tangy, roasty chocolate and coffee with strong floral hops, ripe dark fruity and a long bitter, roasty and hoppy finish. The mouthfeel was fairly thick. Very good.

Bottle, thanks slob! Pours opaque black with a mousy light brown head. The aroma leads off with molasses, followed by chocolate and coffee. Medium body and moderate carbonation. Lightly sweet taste with coffee and chocolate in the fore. The finish disappoints a bit with mostly smoke and ashes, which could probably be fixed with just a little more body.

12 oz. bottle from Premier Gourmet (Buffalo) - Pours a dark brown color with a small light tan head. Light lacing. Aroma is roasted malt and light herbal hops. Flavor is mostly roasted malt with a touch of coffee. Palate is quite bitter and dry. Medium body. Not the best Imp. stout, but worth a try.

Bottle in trade from the artist formerly known as Degarth. Thanks man!
Pours dark black with a lasting nice sized tan head. Smell is sweet, malty roasty and chocolatey. Taste is bitter, a bit burnt, slightly tart, and charred roasty malt. Semi rich body with medium carbonation. Bit of an odd metallic tartness to the finish that I could do without. Otherwise, this would be solid, but this really hinders the flavor.