UPDATED: APR 25, 2023 Poured from the tap. Near black with small tan head. Feint leather and licorice, a touch inky, medium body. Just okay. At least it hides the alcohol.

UPDATED: MAR 7, 2023 On tap, RØØR in Oslo. Kind of dark but I guess it’s very dark brown/black with a thin white bubbly foam. Carbonation light for the keg, not a bad thing (a cask of this would indeed be something). Deep dark spicy roasty aroma, plus malt loaf. Taste goes through toffee, milk chocolate, hint of coffee, a mild marmite, just a touch of hop. A little oxidised. Overall it is good and complex.

UPDATED: FEB 25, 2023 25cl van de tap bij Zeezicht, Breda Alcoholpercentage van 11,8% Uitgetapt in Cigar City glas Uiterlijk: Zwart met kleine crèmekleurige schuimkraag Aroma en smaak: chocolade, goed droppig, gebrande mouten, roasty bitterheid.

UPDATED: OCT 14, 2022 Bottle 2019, shared courtesy of rennat42, thanks Tanner. Poured black with a tan head. Aroma of tobacco, roasted dark malt, chocolate. Taste was sweet, dark roasted malts, coffee, tobacco, molasses, sour fruit, cherry, a spicy element. Nice one.

UPDATED: OCT 11, 2022 Bottle. A- Roasty, mild licorice, tobacco, mild dark fruit. A- Black color, black liquid, brown head. T- Roasty, cocoa, char, mild anise, faint bitterness, molasses. P- Full body, average texture, average carbonation, roasty finish. O- 3 years old and definitely old school. 10-15 years ago, this was world class and it really is a fine beer, but it's definitely become a beer of the past now. Well balanced and well brewed, but I think I'd like the variants better. I am an adjunct addict these days.

UPDATED: SEP 2, 2022 From Gabie. Black dark foam.sweet, raisin alcohol in the aroma. Sweet, raisins, vanilla, chockolate, nice mild bitterness in the aftertaste

UPDATED: APR 28, 2022 Impeccable classic Imperial stout. Opaque dark, coffee brown; minimal head. Nice medium roast on the grain, (night to the edge of burnt/ashy like some). Noticeable chocolate notes

UPDATED: MAR 6, 2022 2017 Vintage Deep, dark brown coloured body with a thinnish, off-white head that fades quickly and leaves just about nothing on top, minus a thin layer of oil and soft tan. Aroma of rich nuts, molasses and some lightly smoked qualities, including soy sauce - quite strong. Medium-bodied; Fairly thin with a lot of roasted malts, oatmeal and sugars all here with some vanilla, earth and grain here as well, but the finish is more soy saucy than sweet. Medium-bodied; Rich malty flavours show through with a lot of oatmeal, vanilla, grain, earth, molasses, caramelised sugars and toffee along with a rich alcohol bite and some noticeable bitterness at the end with a deep pungency from the alcohol. Aftertaste is dry, but super deep and dark with a lot of pungency, especially from the alcohol here. Overall, a quite strong and rich beer with a lot of robust qualities and some alcohol noticeable throughout that was, interestingly enough, my least favourite option of the three part of the vertical/horizontal taste testing of the Cigar City Imperial Stouts, which I thought would be the best of my sample set. I sampled this 65 cL, bomber sized bottle, purchased from Total Wine in Manassas, Virginia on 31-January-2018 for US$16,19 sampled as part of three separate bottles as a vertical and horizontal taste testing of the beer on 25-28 February-2022 at my house here in Washington, in order for me to get them down without being knocked out. 8,3,7,3,15 2018 Vintage While this is deep and dark, the head comes and goes very quickly and doesn't really leave anything on top after a few seconds - odd compared to the others. Aroma of real rich and nutty malts with a bourbon bite and nose and some alcohol coming through just about everywhere, with some robust and rich, anise, licorice and pure pungency noticeable right up front. Aftertaste shows the the pungency, especially from the anise-ridden malts, but also from the caramel, the lactose and yes, some of the icing sugar and deep honey at the end. Overall, a quite strong and very rich beer that is still very fresh and young, but the nuances are here that could seemingly make this a lot better, if the profiles and timing aligned a bit better. I sampled this 65 cL, bomber sized bottle, purchased from Liqour Outlet in Boonton, New Jersey on 21-November-2018 for US$13,99 sampled as part of three separate bottles as a vertical and horizontal taste testing of the beer on 25-28 February-2022 at my house here in Washington, in order for me to get them down without being knocked out. 8,4,8,4,16 Both of these were sampled alongside the Vanilla Hazlenut version as well, which is rated separately here on RateBeer.

UPDATED: JAN 21, 2022 For the 10th year of my daughter, I have opened a great bottle for great opportunity. Sharing it with my wife and her sister, yesterday, at home, Epalinges. A deep black body, heavy that a spoon stayed over the foam, white and brown foam, normal carbonation for the style. Just a great beer to wake up the dead people, a pleasure at each sip. Great note of roasted malt, dark chocolate, cocoa, vanilla, sticky, perfect boozy side, complex and rich in aromas, hop hidden by the malt and chocolate. Buying it at the sterk Amsterdam during my first trip in 2018.

Coffee and chocolate and a bit of vanilla. But super heavy. I wish it didn't weigh me down that much. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone