Southern Tier Jah-va

Brewed by Southern Tier Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Lakewood, New York USA

Black, opaque, creamy,dark tan head. Thick, sweet, chocolately. At 125 IBU’s it is still treacly. Strong coffee and chocolate with a light hop hit in the aftertaste. I understand why they recommend drinking it from a snifter. At 12% ABV this must be sipped. One bomber bottle makes a session. For those who believe there is no such thing as too much, this is an imperial for us!

Many thanks to TheRealBastard for sending this beer. Very very dark pour, black with a medium sized brown head. Aroma is kinda strange and a bit misguided; the strongest element is some sort of parsely/spruce, carrots and grass, then the "nose in a bag of coffee beans" aroma comes out along with dark chocolate. Flavor, WOAH. This is one hell of a malt-bomb! Big dark chocolate flavors, mocha, hot chocolate, vanilla, roast, licorice and maple. Very very desserty, could use a raisin note to balance. Sweet finish going down, dark chocolate, bitter mellow roast finish. Thick, incredibly creamy and viscous, the way a big stout texture should be. Carbonation is a bit prickly though. Very good flavor and I love the thickness but the aromas kinda fucked up.

22oz bottle acquired in trade with OhioDad (thanks Scott!). Bottle labeled bottled on November 22, 2005. Poured a dark, dark black color (doesn’t get darker than this one) with an averaged sized brown head. Aromas of coffee grounds, vanilla, and pine. Tastes of lighter coffee, chocolate, and dark fruits. I really enjoy coffee beers and this one was good. The coffee was not overdone. Light alcohol finish (but not 12%).

Nice big bomber bottle. I was excited to try this given my homebrew impy coffee stout’s propensity to be "too ove the top". Is this coffee stout one to aspire to? You bet! Poured (in taster cups) a very dark brown/black...no head, but that’s not a big surprise. Nice roasty malt aroma, nice coffee presence. Big mocha malty taste, the coffee is subtle, not like my brain-melting homebrew. Nice hop bitterness accompanies a full-bodied mouthfeel.....best coffee stout I’ve ever had. I sense some strength, but it doesn’t go against my good feelings about this brew. Very nice IS.

Julios Spring Beer Fest. Rich aroma of coffee, oaked tannins, and Mexican vanilla beads. Pour of deep dark oily black, with fine frothy top of sun darkened tan. Flavor is an invigorating and intense coffee, hazlenut, and dry melted belgian chocolate. Nose is warming and sweet, with hits of bourbon and toast. Mouthfeel is tops, with plenty of creamy, sweet goodness to go around. Outstanding! All around a classic. Any beer with Blue Mountain coffee is bound to be good. RERATE. Sharp acerbic and incredibly intense coffee bean roast. Flavor is a highly restrained chocolate, yet lending to a light chocolate nib presentation in a sweet, astringent coffee roast bite. I find it a bit less shallow than I expected. The coffee character is so phenomenal, yet melds with the malt character to create a uniformly impressive presentation. There’s some nicely charred sweet barbeque sauce that lends to the taste. It’s one of the most unique coffee flavors. Hops lend a nice touch. A most admirably noted beer as having such sophisticated coffee tones, from a fresh hot french press cup, to a steaming shot of dark espresso to a lacing of gourmet liquer. All around awesome!

Bottle. Opaque black with small tan had. Big roasty coffee aroma, with some dark fruit. Big coffee flavors with sweet milky chocolate, and some dark fruit notes as well. Thick body, and a clean finish with light bitterness. A touch on the sweeter side as far as imp stouts go, but it works well with the roasty bitter coffee. Very well done.

Robe noire surmontée d’une mousse brune épaisse qui s’estompe. Arômes de café, de torréfié et de malt caramélisé. Saveurs de café, de caramel et de céréales.

(22 oz. bottle (brewed 11/22/05) from <A HREF=http://www.ratebeer.com/Place/massachusetts/w target=blank>Julio’s Liquors, cellared for 9 mos. after purchase) Tasty, smooth and some complexity...This pours dark, dark coffee brown, virtually opaque. About 1/4" of brown head recedes to a thin layer. Nose is plum, cherries and chocolate. Mouthfeel is smooth and lightly oily. Some fine rings of lacing. Flavor is dark chocolate, plum and cherry overtop of some rich roasted coffee. There is some alcohol presence but not overpowering at all. Kind of port-like. Well-balanced and smooth. Perhaps cellaring did this well. Pretty yummy.