Victory Storm King Imperial Stout

Brewed by Victory Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Downingtown, Pennsylvania USA

TAP: jet black pour, tan head. Big roasty nose with chocolate present. Medium bodied. Taste is big roasty stout, but good lord does this one have a hop presence - moreso than most in this style, and maybe a bit much for me for a big ’ol stout.

ENJOY BY: OCT 10 13 Super dark brown liquid. Two finger head of chocolate brown foam. Retention is decent and lacing is fairly good. Good amount of maltiness in the nose. Some sizable chocolate presence. Unexpected hop presence, for the style. Piney and citrusey. You can tell that this one is a ’new’ interpretation of the style. Slight espresso notes, with hints of caramel. Big dark chocolate malt backbone. Roasted grains. Burnt espresso. Slight undertones of piney hops. Not as prominent as in the nose. Smooth. A little weak, though, IMO. I like my Stouts, especially Imperials, to be quite abit thicker and full-bodied than this. Not near the level of creaminess that I would expect. Yes, it’s pretty drinkable. On the other hand, I think it’s for a select group of people. I’m glad I was forewarned about the hoppy quality to be found in this. If I hadn’t been, I’d be pretty disappointed with this one. I don’t like big hop notes in my stouts.

12 oz bottle from the Four Firkins. Black pour with a tan head. Milk chocolate aroma. Roasted coffee flavor with a hoppy bite to it. Lingering bitter on the palate, interesting to have a stout with noticeable hops like this.

This was the first beer I’d tried from Victory, which is a brewery I have really come to enjoy quite a bit. A great imperial stout with deep, rich roasted coffee flavors.

Bottle, about 1 1/2 years old. Hoppy, fruity, aroma, with chocolate and some coffee, slightly boozy, with a touch of wood too. Not as much aroma as I expected. Well balanced flavor with hops, some dark fruit, coffee, and wood. Not very sweet, really. Rather light, with a bitter hop and roast finish. Decent but not really exciting. Not as complex as some other. Seemed to get much better after it opened up for about an hour or so, though.

Bottle. Sample at Göteborgs Porterfestival. Black colour with a brown head. Hoppy, citrusy, roasted, alcohol, dark chocolate, coffee, malt sweetness. A bit too much citrus hops and alcohol.

Bottle. Black body, with a medium brown head. Aroma is roasted malt, coffee, chocolate and vanilla. Flavor is is the same including alcohol and hops. Not as powerful as I was expecting, but still good.

Pours a deep black color with an enormous fluffy head that leaves plenty of lace. The aroma is a bit simple but entirely enjoyable with some fresh hops, chocolate and rye bread. The flavor is wonderfully complex but is dominated by fresh hop character featuring especially citrus and piney flavors. The rest of the flavors include dark and milk chocolate light molasses, an awesome fruity character and some light burnt notes. The palate is perfectly full and creamy. A top class beer.