Stone Imperial Russian Stout

Pours like crude oil. Thick, opaque, heavy. Nose is very dark chocolatey with some nougat sweetness, almost like whoppers candy. But still, very dark cocoa/chocolateness that dominates. On the palate is one of the most chocolatey beers I’ve ever had. Whereas Youngs Double Chocolate is close to Hershey’s Milk Chocolate, the Stone Imperial Stout is close to a bar of Godiva Dark Chocolate. Wow. Huge. Maltiness is amazing. A pleasant roasted taste is there too, some hops in the balance, but I’m mesmerized by the chocolate. Finish goes on for quite some time. The chocolate just lingers. My wife swears that I have a stash of choclate somewhere because of the chocolatiness on my breath!

Big oil black with a small brownish head. Aromas of sweet chocolate and roast coffee. Big, bold, sweet without being heavy, dangerously easy drinking RIS. Great aftertaste. What more can I say. It’s perfect.

Bottle from Utobeer. Almost black, small brown head. Smoked malts and chocolate aroma and flavours. No hiding the vanilla. Very complex for sure.

Creamy brown head, colour is almost pitch black. Smell is roasted, coffee, hops, liqorice. Flavour is exceptional! It’s sweet powerful, heavily roasted, dark chocolate, liqorice and very warming but yet not overwhelming. Mouthfeel is very smooth. The best imperial stout I’ve had to date. Serving type: bottle

Aroma: Chocolate frosted cake all day with hints of vanilla and coffee. Later, slight vegetal notes briefly appear before being drowned out by persistent chocolate aromas. Flavor: Smooth 60% bitter chocolate and milder cocoa,followed by more roasted chocolate and coffee. Then, add more chocolate. Finish has mildly bitter chocolate and coffee flavors. Comment: 2005 bottle aged 3 years and tasted Sept., 2008. Very smooth, lovely full-bodied mouth feel with integrated flavors, mellow chocolate and coffee. I was afraid that this might have been past it’s prime, but in fact it may be at it’s best at 3 years of age. Based on a friend’s remark that he had tried vanilla ice cream with stout on it at Pike Place Brewing in Seattle, we put a small dollop into our glasses later on. The result: A tasty chocolate and vanilla float with enhanced bitter chocolate and coffee finish. Though this seems like an intensely shameful thing to do a a beer, I might try it again, maybe even in public.

Poured from a 12oz. bottle into a pint glass. The color is a bark black and is complete opaque when held to the light with a think deep brown head. Some nice brown lacing. The smell is a strong mocha coffee flavor. Some sweet roasted malt flavor with some kind of creamy chocolate flavor and a small hint of licorice. The taste is a bit dark chocolate at first. Some slight maple flavor with a great roasty flavor as well. The beer begins to warm you some as each sip with the slight creamy flavor just toward the back end. Like any Stone beer I have had, this beer is full of flavor. The feel of this beer is a bit strong with a high ABV. It does have a warming feel to it. It is medium bodied and goes down well. A fantastic beer.

Call it a personal impression, but I just can’t get into this Imperial Stout. It’s just way too thick ... like watered down oil. The flavor is great, the thickness really gets to me, though. I prefer North Coast Old Rasputin for my Imperial Stout needs.

Deep black with a thin, creamy light brown head. Aroma of sweet roasted malt, dark coffee and chocolate. Flavor is creamy roasted malt, milk chocolate and a tangy sweet finish. Full bodied and thick on the palate. Very rich and satisfying.