Weyerbacher Old Heathen

Brewed by Weyerbacher Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Easton, Pennsylvania USA

Black without much (if any) head. Aroma is decent but it’s very faint. It seemed like it was going to be a run of the mill imperial stout, but this medium-bodied, smooth finished beer has an outstanding flavor.

2005 release, Sampled October 2007
Pours with a one finger thick, light brown colored head that sits atop an opaque, black colored brew. The aroma is quite concentrated with notes of roasted, dried figs, cherries, a touch of sherry, light chocolate notes, smooth espresso roast coffee beans, and a touch of alcohol, which adds some fruit-brandy like notes here that is quite distinct. An aged character has thinned out the malt a bit here, but seems to have smoothed things out quite a bit as well.

This has somewhat of a light body, at least for an Imperial Stout, but it does have some heft to it which provides some palate coating character and body to this brew. The taste has a touch of caramelized, slightly roasted sweetness to it and it is actually fairly fruity tasting as well (raisins, figs, perhaps a hint of cherry, and even some notes of prunes; all of which have been roasted / burnt to one degree or other). Chalky chocolate malt notes and roasted grain flavors (reminiscent of smooth espresso) linger in the finish as does a very slight, hop bitterness. A burnt plum character becomes more prominent as the beer warms up a bit. This is quite smooth tasting & feeling, though it could be a touch too thin.

This has clearly aged in the two years since bottling, perhaps a bit more than expected, but it is still a tasty brew and would even age gracefully for at least another couple of years.

Nov 2005 - Beer poured dark brown with a tan fluffy head which dissipated quickly. The aroma and flavor was of roasted coffee beans with an alcohol sweetness. The flavor was nice and full, but the alcohol taste was a bit too sweet for my likings. Good beer, but not outstanding.

Pours black with little head. Great chocolaty malt character. Roasted substance, coffee. Creamy dry finish.

pours opaque black with a brown head. full and robust coffee roast flavor with milky chocolate undertones. alcohol cuts through with a nice little zing. smooth, though. woud go well with a chocolatey dessert.

Pours pitch black with a small little light brown head. Big chocolate and roast in the nose. Pretty rich smelling with a big dark malt presence. The flavor is big on the chcolate and roastiness. Very thick and rich palate, with really not much bitterness in the finish nor in the aftertaste. Seems to be balanced pretty well, although it had a little sweet tartness to it towards the end that seemed somewhat out of place. Pretty good though overall.

Nice imperial bottled with a sweet label that reminds me of the album cover for Neil Young’s Harvest Moon album. Aroma is milk chocolaty with some light coffee thanks no doubt to some roasted malts, nutty and creamy. Opaque rich brown pour with a settling small brown head and stringy lacing. Fairly easy on the palate for this style, but it’s still rich and slightly chewy. Smooth and dry, it’s readily drinkable with a bitter end. Flavor shows a more burnt darker chocolate, toasted malts-o-plenty. There’s a nice sharpness that fades with just a hint of metallic off flavor. Very nice stout, no it’s not as complex or robust as the great imperials but it’s still worth enjoying.

Pours black and thick, little to no head (LOL). Aroma of heavily roasted malts and coffee. Flavour is somewhat full, coffee and burnt malts comes through well. Dry cherries comes across at the end. Overall an OK Impy, not exactly what I would consider a knockout. Bottom line, its a good beer, but there other great ones out there.