Southern Tier Jah-va

A nice but typical coffee themed imperial stout. Aroma was weak for the style but had a vinous background underneath the obvious coffee. Pour was a flat black with no head. Taste was a little thin and not very carbonated. Strong coffee and roasted malt with a red wine-like aftertaste. Alcohol is big in this one. Not bad.

Poured from a 22oz bomber and served in a snifter. This beer poured a dark brown with some mahogany highlights around the edges of the glass. A flimsy head of short lived tan bubbles left a small amount of lace. The aroma of the beer was made up of coffee, mild chocolate, roasted nuts, and some alcohol. The flavor consisted of fresh coffee, burnt sugar, nuts, a light chocolate note, and earthy yeast. A healthy amount of alcohol was also present. The mouthfeel was full-bodied but felt a bit thin and watered down. The carbonation level was moderate. I usally enjoy most offerings from ST (I loved both Oat and Choklat), but this was not one of their finer moments.

Decided to have some fun and do a side by side tasting with Lagunitas Cappucino stout. Why not. Abysmal black with a brown head that reminds me slightly of O.B’s Ten-Fidy. The aroma is hard for me to peg. There is something synthetic about it. That’s not good. There’s just a hint of alcohol in the aroma. Flavor is absolutely loaded with coffee. Rich, creamy and dense with a nice bitter and slightly astringent finish that literaly makes my mouth water. Slight burn but not bad at all. I suspect this is a very well made coffee Impy but it’s just not my thing. I can not wait to get my hands on some Stone RIS!

Pours dark brown with small tan head. Aroma of roasted barley, dark chocolate, coffee, and a bit of alcohol. A fairly simplistic Imperial Stout with heavy emphasis on coffee and chocolate notes with nice hop bitterness at the end. Some vanilla and toffee notes are also present. I prefer the Choklat and Oat Imperials from Southern Tier to this one, but that is not to say that this isn’t a well done I.S. Nice full body to this one but slightly sticky.

On tap at Map Room, Chicago. I’m so far off of the standard deviation on this beer, I’m now wondering if I got a dirty glass or if my palate was already fried. Anyway-- I just thought it had a very rough, almost oxidized flavor. The coffee was a little bitter in flavor. But the aftertaste just turned me off-- almost skunky or soapy-- not sure. I just can’t believe all the other great reviews-- I might need to try this one again. All I kept thinking while drinking-- boy this is not even close to Founders Breakfast Stout.

Bottle. Pours black with a brown head. Aroma is roasted malt with notes of coffee and a hint of hops. Full body, thick, almost creamy. Flavor starts with sweet chocolate, lingers on coffee beans and has a bitter finish of coffee and hops. Quite good.

Very good, although not quite as good as Choklat. Much drier and more roasted, with a very strong although not overwhelming coffee burst. Looks fantastic, darkness and good head, although I have to compliment myself on a perfect pour. And at a surprising 12% it remains dangorously drinkable.

A VERY NICE BLENDED STOUT. COFFEE TASTE IS NOT OVER WHELMING TASTE MORE LIKE A BLENDED STOUT VERY NICE ON ON A COLD DAY. POSITIVELY WORTH TRYING,