Bottle courtesy of Greg Koch at our stop at the Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens on 08/03/2008 on day three of RBSG. Clear dark brown body with ruby highlights and a small light brown head. Sweet roast, choclate caramel, smoke and bacon aroma. Bacon flavor with roast caramel and light smoke.

Bottle... RBSG ‘08... This beer rocks!... Pours almost pitch black. When held up to the So Cal sun, it’s a murky burnt orange ale with a small, creamy, khaki head. Good retention. Nutty, fruity, toasted aroma. Full-bodied with a velvety mouthfeel and tingly carbonation. Chocolaty, nutty flavor with some nice roasted notes. Neither burnt nor bitter. Pretty well-balanced. Roasted finish with only a hint of bitterness. Thanks to Greg Koch for breaking this world class brew out for our table to try!

RBSG ’08: Provided by Greg Koch. Poured a clear deep brown color with a tan head. Coffee and sweet roasted malt make up the aroma. The flavor was sweet with light chocolate and coffee. Medium bodied. The beer finished with dark cocoa powder.

From bottle at Stone Bistro, thanks to Greg Koch. Pours black and with a chocolate coloured and creamy head. Roasted and chocolate malty aroma, quite inviting. Smooth flavour with mainly roasted malt and chocolate, simple yet tasty. Lingering smooth finish of this.

Oily looking brown color with just a halo of brown bubbles on top. The nose was pretty tame but you could discern some roastedness in there somewhere. The flavors were roasty as well and the mouthfeel was nice, smooth and clean.