551. Epic Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout

Another beer from Epic; we scored this one at the DRAFT Christmas bottle exchange. Since the Utah Sage Saison, we’ve been looking to try something else by them, so I can’t complain. We’ll add this to the list that also includes Brainless on Cherries. Hells yes.

Described on the label as an Imperial Stout brewed “with cocoa nibs and coffee added and aged in whiskey barrels,” Big Bad Baptist pours an inky rich chocolate with a cocoa-colored thin head that quickly reduces to a waft-ish skiff covering complete with arabesques. The nose is dusky cocoa, coffee, and a hint of vanilla from the oak; there is also roast malt and hints of alcohol. Flavors are brash and to the fore: chocolate, cocoa, and roast make up the front, moving into coffee and vanilla in the middle, while the finish is cocoa and a touch of alcohol warmth with more of the roast lingering along with the alcohol warmth. The cocoa does fights it out with the roast in the finish, not lying down to the bigger, sharper flavors. The body is medium with a nicely chewy malt mouthfeel and a restrained carbonation that helps brighten the beer on the tongue. It was a bit hot when first opened, but as it warmed, the other flavors rounded and balanced the beer. An interesting beer that could probably have used another year before we opened it, but we saw the ABV only after I cracked this sucker open. My bad! The cocoa aspect of this beer really stands out, however; it is delicate and ephemeral in a beer that is not subtle, and even as the beer warms and the oak, vanilla, and alcohol start to exert themselves, the cocoa subtlety remains. Epic has been doing some good things—after this and our experience with Utah Sage, we may have to dabble more extensively in their catalog in the future.

From the Epic website: “One Big Bad Imperial Stout with Cocoa nibs and Coffee beans. Each release number uses a different dark roasted coffee.”

ABV: 11.8%
Release #3: bottled 12/9/2011
Malts: Muntons Maris Otter, Briess 2-Row, Crystal Muntons, Weyerman Light Munich T1, 2-Row chocolate, 2-row black, and roasted barley
Other: Millcreek Coffee (French Roast) and Cocoa Nibs.
Hops: Nugget, Chinook, and Cascade

(12/21/12)

370. Weyerbacher Tiny

We got a big ol’ bottle from Weyerbacher for tonight’s shenanigans. Scrumptious! The last two from Weyerbacher were Double Simcoe IPA and Harvest Ale, so this marks a little something different from those troublemakers in Easton. I guess we’re willing to be their guinea pigs, but only for tonight, here me? Harump!

As the label informs us, “this velvet concoction excites your senses with bottomless roasted, earthy and vinous notes.” Alright then, Tiny, bring it. Tiny, which is a Belgian-Style Imperial Stout, pours a thick inky chocolate with a creamy mocha head that looks like the foam on an espresso drink and that sticks around for the long haul. The nose is creamy with a whole lotta roastiness mixed with smaller amounts Belgian yeast fruitiness; flavors start with dark, roasty, and lightly sweet malt flavors mixed with some creaminess. The middle sees an emergence of dark fruit flavors mixed with more of the roasted flavors and coupled with light chocolate hints, finishing with more chocolate, roastiness, and creaminess, and small amounts of alcohol flavor. Tiny has a medium to heavy body with a creamy, chewy, and slightly slick mouthfeel while the carbonation is medium, although it has a brightness in the front before rounding the final third—it is pretty lively on the palate, especially for an imperial stout, which does help lighten the mouthfeel. The alcohol warmth is minimal but present, with a bit of a tang in the back of the mouth at the end. An interesting beer—we’re not sure what we think of the combination of a Belgian-esque beer, with the bright fresh carbonation, yeast esters, and fruitiness, with an imperial stout, with the roastiness and alcohol strength. This is most certainly not a Belgian strong—the roastiness is too omnipresent. So while good, it still tastes like it needs to sit in the basement for like a spell to marry flavors and calm and connect the parts. For now, we’ll just note that the Belgian IPA seems to be a better combination than the Belgian Imperial Stout. Unless someone else has a new hat to throw in the ring...

I wasn’t able to find any information on the Weyerbacher website; Beer Advocate did offer this under Beer Releases: “Supplies are limited, we only had 700 cases overall. We expect to make Tiny on an occaisional basis, with the next release possibly this coming Winter.”

ABV: 11.8%

(7/5/2010)

362. Deschutes The Abyss 2009 Reserve

More fancy stuff for the final week, and more from Deschutes. Ah, Deschutes. So near and dear. And being that this is lucky number 7 from Deschutes, what a way to round things out, no? Our last six include Black Butte Porter XXI, Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Black Butte Porter, Hop Trip, Inversion, and Red Chair IPA.

Described on the front label as a “stout brewed with licorice and molasses with 33% aged in oak and oak bourbon barrels,” The Abyss pours a rich thick espresso brown with a creamy tan head that reduces to a thin persistent covering; when swirled, it leaves legs on the glass and raises more of the creamy tan head. The nose is roasted malt with a dash of an herbal licorice aroma in the background (as opposed to an anise-based licorice aroma). Flavors open with rich molasses and chocolate sweetness, and move into roasted malt and dark coffee creaminess in the middle coupled with low levels of bitterness before finishing with a touch of vanilla and a light bourbon based alcohol presence mixed with a bit of tannic oak, roasted and burnt malt flavors, and chocolate. Abyss has a heavy body that is lightly vinous, creamy, and chewy, although lighter on the palate and cleaner than either Dark Lord or Serpent Stout. There is some warming from the alcohol, but no hotness or bite; the carbonation is light to medium, and mixes well with the oak to round the beer across the profile. An excellent beer that is drinkable now, Abyss should (hopefully) continue to develop with age. Abyss is the best of the last three; it has the wider and more complex range of flavors than Serpent Stout, and it comes together more coherently than Dark Lord. Lots more o’ the yummy—go Deschutes!

From the bottle: “It’s dark. It’s deep. It’s mysterious. This imperial stout has immeasurable depth inviting you to explore and discover its rich complex profile. The flavor of this special brew draws you in further and further with each sip. The Abyss beckons. Enjoy the journey.”

From the Deschutes website: “The Abyss has immeasurable depth inviting you to explore and discover its rich, complex profile. Hints of molasses, licorice and other alluring flavors draw you in further and further with each sip. And at 11% alcohol by volume, you will want to slowly savor each and every ounce. Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 marks the fourth release of this dark and mysterious imperial stout. Limited availability in wax-dipped 22-ounce bottles and on draft at a few select establishments.”

ABV: 11.0%

IBU: 65
Best After: 11/1/2010

Elli’s parents, who were visiting, were less impressed than we were with this beer.

(6/27/10)

361. The Lost Abbey Serpent Stout 2009

Our illustrious final week of big beers continues with the Lost Abbey Serpent Stout. This is our third beer from Lost Abbey; the last two were Carnevale Ale and Avant Garde Ale. Spoiler alert and obnoxious prose warning all rolled into one: sorry guys, it’s not a classic struggle between good and evil. It’s just beer.

It’s the fall of mankind!!!

Serpent Stout 2009 pours a deep, rich coffee with a latte-colored head. The nose, however, breaks with the coffee theme—there are chocolate, roasted, dark fruit, and alcohol aromas; the dark fruit combines with the alcohol to create a bit of a port-like or sherry-like aroma that is mixed with a bit of creaminess. The flavor profile is a super chocolate bomb—we’ve got sweet milk chocolate in the front, dry dark chocolate in the middle, and cocoa in the finish. In addition to the chocolate, there are molasses hints in the front as well as some roastiness that starts in the middle and lingers through the finish, coupled with a bit of alcohol flavor, small amounts of chalkiness, and possibly some hop bitterness as well, although we’re not certain on that last one. There is none of the fruit from the nose in the body, or any of burnt malt flavors you’d expect to find in a big stout like this—it is a very different beer from the nose, which is more complex and nuanced. Serpent Stout has a heavy body with a rich, vinous mouthfeel that is a bit sticky and also chewy; the alcohol is kept nicely in check—while there is a bit of alcohol flavor, there are no hot alcohol characteristics on the palate. The carbonation, while having a bit of bite in the turn toward the final third, is pretty minimal in the overall mouthfeel. A good beer overall; it could use a bit more variety and complexity in regards to the flavor profile, but it is still very drinkable. In fact, as it currently stands, Serpent Stout trumps Dark Lord; while both are still young, Serpent Stout is much more of an enjoyable beer right now—while both are good, Serpent Stout drinks easier than Dark Lord.

From the bottle: “From the beginning of time, it was so decreed. ‘From this Tree of Knowledge, you shall not eat this fruit.’ Soon enough, the serpent slithered through the Garden convincing Eve to tastethe nectar from this forbidden fruit. Once bitten and shamed, she then tempted Adam. Together, their atrocious actions brought Original Sin upon our world. Discontent to rest on his laurels the Serpent continued his cunning ways bringing forth more temptations. Ultimately, he foisted upon the world his own Serpent Stout--a liquid so dark and viscous that all who tasted soon fell victim to this evil incarnate. Some turned to false prophets seeking advice. None of it mattered. Each struggle revealed the battle between Good and Evil. And now that you are holding a bottle of this liquid, it is certain he has tempted even you... So, welcome to our Daker Side of Life--home to the Serpent Stout’s Original Sin and the tastiest beer known to man.”

From the Lost Abbey website: “The history of the bible and religion is indeed the struggle of good vs. evil. Our Serpent’s Stout recognizes the evil of the dark side that we all struggle with. This is a massively thick and opaque beer that begs the saints to join the sinners in their path to a black existence. Pours dark and thick, with a creamy mocha-colored head and aromas of roasted malts, dark chocolate and french roast coffee. The mouthfeel is full, smooth and round on the tongue. The taste is rich with deep roasted malts, cocoa, coffee and a touch of vanilla balanced perfectly against the alcohol to create an excellent winter warmer.”

ABV: 11%

Elli’s idea for this was to mix Serpent Stout with a cider and make a snakebite, which would not only triple the serpent theme of the beer—serpent, apples, and snakebite—it would play perfectly into the whole Garden of Eden and fall of man theme. But we didn’t have any cider on hand, and were thus left with a good idea with no possibility of follow through. Or in other words, par for the course.

(6/26/10)

352. Avery Black Tot

The third beer from Avery’s Barrel-Aged Series; we previously sampled Brabant Barrel-Aged Wild Ale, but missed Sui Generis—but pretty much everyone missed that one. We do need to score a bottle or two of Dépuceleuse to stock away for a rainy day. Previously, we’ve tried Seventeen Dry-Hopped Black Lager, Anniversary Ale Ten (2003), Brabant Barrel-Aged Wild Ale, Ellie’s Brown Ale, 16th Anniversary Ale and duganA IPA. from Avery, making this our seventh beer from Boulder, CO—or at least the seventh beer from this brewery in Boulder, CO. I know, I know, the details...

Black Tot pours an inky dark chocolate; it has orange highlights and a burnt tan head that reduces to a ring after two or three minutes. The nose is an interesting mix of creaminess, dark rich malt, cane sugar, burnt sugar, molasses, tannic oakiness, and low levels of rum sweetness (but not alcohol). The oak contributes to the creamy and tannic aromas, and the parts are more distinct than married together. Flavors begin with a good amount of sweetness—cane and burnt sugar flavors, molasses, and rich malt sweetness—before transitioning to a tannic middle that is sharp and even almost tart; the oak tastes young and bright and some slight roasted malt peeks through as well. The finish still contains a good amount of lingering oak tannins, and a return of the rum sweetness with some rum alcohol flavors to round things out. The body is medium; the bright oak makes it feel thinner than it is on the mouth, and the carbonation almost disappears in relation to the sharpness of wood and alcohol. There is bite and puckering from both oak tannins and the alcohol at the end. Black Tot is sharp and very young tasting—this beer needs some time to mellow and allow the flavors to marry before we’ll even have a sense of what this beer could end up tasting like. I’d say that we opened this at least a year too early, if not more.

From the bottle: “Experimentation. Ales and lagers that defy styles or categories. This is what we are about: our driving force, our passion. To further facilitate this innovative spirit, we’ve developed our Barrel-Aged Series where anything, and we mean ANYTHING, goes! Brewed for those as adventurous as we are! No. 3. Swabbies, what could be better than yer daily rats o’ thick, chewy, and robust Imperial Oatmeal Stout? What say you, mateys? Aye, throw in yer beloved empty rum barrel for aging! To our sweethearts and wives, may they never meet! Huzzah!”

Um, do pirates actually think about aging beer? I didn’t think so...

ABV: 10.08%
Bottled: 1/13/2010
Production: 315 cases

(6/17/10)

301. Goose Island Bourbon County Stout 2009

Our third beer from Goose Island, although this one rates far far better than Summertime, which was featured as a part of our Summer Beer Leftover Trifecta. Well, at least according to me it does. The other Goose Island beer was the Honker’s Ale.

Bourbon County Stout pours an inky black that is thick and dark with a minimal light brown head. Add any other appropriate descriptors that you feel you need to convey the darkness of the beer—Greg Hall, Goose Island Brewmaster, chooses “black hole,” which is good. And since we can’t top that, we’ll stick with thick and dark. The nose is full of creamy oak and bourbon, with vanilla and caramel sweetness jockeying for position behind the first two. Bourbon County Stout starts thick and sweet; the dark caramel and roastiness build a solid front before giving way to vanilla and oaky bourbon flavors in the middle, and finishing with burnt sugar and charred wood flavors plus a decent amount of alcohol warmth that lingers on the mouth, throat, and chest. Bourbon County Stout has a thick, rich, and creamy mouthfeel. It’s also hella chewy. Elli says it is too sticky and cloying; I agree it is a bit much currently, but I like this beer a lot more than she does. There is also a good amount of alcohol heat and burn—the alcohol does taste a bit young, so we’re guessing that a bit more aging (“up to 5 years in the bottle” as indicated on the label) would certainly help lessen the young alcohol flavor. We’re also guessing that further aging might smooth out the body, both in terms of thickness and marrying of flavors. Nonetheless, a delicious and excellent beer. Elli is less forgiving, but I do like me some Bourbon County Stout. I do wish we could find it in bottles smaller than a 22 oz. size, as powering through that much 13% beer does take some doing. And as you can guess, Elli is not so interested in helping me out with this beer in the future.

From the bottle: “A liquid as dark and dense as a black hole with thick foam the color of a bourbon barrel. The nose is an intense mix of charred oak, vanilla, caramel and smoke. One sip more flavor than your average case of beer. Cheers!” Greg Hall, Brewmaster

From the Goose Island website: “Brewed in honor of the 1000th batch at our original Clybourn brewpub. A liquid as dark and dense as a black hole with thick foam the color of a bourbon barrel. The nose is an intense mix of charred oak, chocolate, vanilla, caramel and smoke. One sip has more flavor than your average case of beer. A great cigar beer.”

ABV: 13%
IBU: 60
Malts: 2-Row, Munich, Chocolate, Caramel, Roast Barley, Debittered Black
Hops: Willamette
Bottled on 10/09/09

(4/27/2010)

295. Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary Fritz & Ken’s Ale

This marks our sixth beer from Sierra Nevada. We’ve run through Kellerweis, Celebration, Torpedo Extra IPA, Anniversary Ale 2009 and Harvest Wet Hop Ale 2008.

30th Anniversary pours an opaque black—there are few red highlights in the corners of the glass, but not much light is making it through this one. The head is a thick tan, and the nose is a roasty rich malt with chocolate. The beer begins with a rich chocolate and light coffee flavor, moving into dry and roasty malt flavors in the middle, and finishing with light alkaline chalkiness accompanied by a bit of lingering alcohol and warmth at the end. Creamy, soft, and chewy on the mouth; the carbonation is medium, and helps build the soft and chewy mouthfeel. The beer does taste a bit young, which is not too surprising; the alcohol warmth and flavor at the end would most certainly be smoothed out after a year or two, and the chocolate in the front would probably also dry out a bit. Nonetheless, an interesting and delicious beer—it’s too bad we only could get our hands on one bottle of this, as we’d love to see how it tastes in about another year. [Note: second bottle scored and stored. Check back with us later.]

From the Sierra Nevada website: “Fritz Maytag. Owner of San Francisco’s Anchor Brewing Company, is regarded as the founding father of the craft brewing movement. Fritz agreed to guest brew this very special ale in honor of our 30th anniversary. As a nod to the dark ales and stouts that seduced both Fritz and Ken in the early years, we bring you this pioneering stout, a rich roasted ale, perfect for aging, and worthy of your finest snifter. Enjoy!”

ABV: 9.2%

(4/21/2010)

268. Dark Horse Plead the 5th Imperial Stout

“I’m not sure we should be encouraging the imperialism.”
Elli’s comment before drinking this beer; her term for the turn towards bigger and bigger beers—i.e. making everything into an imperial beer

Another in a long line of stout beers from both Dark Horse and Michigan; this is our fifth beer from Dark Horse—kinda fortuitous, huh?—and like our 876th stout from Michigan. Previous beers include Fore Smoked Stout, Too Cream Stout, One Oatmeal Stout and Crooked Tree IPA. We gave the cold shoulder to Tres Blueberry Stout, although in retrospect, we may feel a little bad about hurting its feelings.

Plead the 5th is an inky dark brown with garnet highlights; the brown head is pretty minimal—it barely gave us more than a ring on the glass. The nose is roasty with a bit of dark fruit and creaminess—the roasted aromas are not harsh, but rather smooth and rounded. Plead the 5th has a roasted and toasty malt front; the middle has some dark fruit flavors—some raisin, some currant, or maybe some grape—and the end is burnt and spicy with some alcohol that lingers along with the final roasted flavors. Heavy bodied and a bit syrupy, Plead the 5th has a thick and creamy mouthfeel. There is also a good amount of warmth in the back of the throat, although not as much alcohol flavor and feel for a 12% ABV beer as we expected. Excellent flavors, but a bit heavy on the mouth, and the lingering alcohol does increases with warmth—we’re not sure if this is an improvement on some of their smaller stouts. We’ll be interested to see how this beer ages, as it has the potential to become something quite delicious.

Update (3/20/2011): We pulled out another bottle to try. Let’s just say that the year in the basement has been very good to this beer. Flavors are smooth and even across the palate—much more than last year. As well, a fair amount of the alcohol flavor has disappeared; the emphasis now is on smooth roasted malt and creaminess in the finish. The body is still a bit sticky, but you’re not going to completely escape that in a beer this big, are you? There are also a lot more chocolate and coffee flavors, specifically in the front and middle, that blends well with the fruit flavors in the middle. The finish has a pleasant mix of roastiness mixed with molasses and brown sugar. The noise is a slight bit disappointing—there is roasted malt, fruit, and licorice, but all are very faint. We’ve been waiting for it to open up as it warms, but nothing much yet.

From the Dark Horse website: “It’s big and full bodied with lots of roasted malts and balanced with heavy hops to put this imperial in a league of its own.”

ABV: 12.0%

I think this ABV pleads the 5th...

(3/25/2010)

172a. Stoudts Fat Dog Imperial Oatmeal Stout

So since the holiday season is upon us, I’ve bolted for the relative warmth of the Pacific Northwest, abandoning Elli to the cold of Dayton. This also means that we’re gonna have a little over a week of separate beer drinking. Elli’s choice to celebrate our separation was to pull out the Stoudts. This is our fifth Stoudts beer (well, not for me)—previously we’ve had Oktoberfest, American Pale Ale, Scarlet Lady ESB, and Heifer-in-Wheat.

Fat Dog is, according to the bottle, a bottle conditioned Imperial Oatmeal Stout. The nose is a combination of dark roasted and caramel aromas with toffee and vanilla rounding it out. Pouring a deep, dark brown, Fat Dog is clear despite the bottle conditioning with a creamy tan head. The beer starts creamy and sweet, then moves into roasted and chocolate flavors; there are no coffee or burnt malt flavors apparent, leaving the beer very smooth. Fat Dog is fairly dry overall; while there is some sweetness in the front, it finishes dry and bitter with a touch of hoppiness and spiciness at the end. Silky smooth, rich mouthfeel with a medium to heavy body and good carbonation that lingers and laces the glass heavily. As the beer warms, more alcohol is evident is the flavor and mouthfeel, as well as some nuttiness. Elli is not certain about this being bottle-conditioned (although the website says so as well)—besides being very clear, there was no yeast at the bottom of the bottle. Overall, Fat Dog is a smooth, rounded,and delicious beer—with the nutty and roasted flavors, it’s a very well-balanced and drinkable big beer.

From the Stoudts website: “This unique ale merges the smooth and complex richness of an Oatmeal Stout with the assertive hoppiness of Imperial Stout. Fat Dog has an inviting silky-black color, a prominent roasted malt character, and a chocolatey, coffee-like finish. For a special treat we aged a small batch of this beer in bourbon barrels and corked finished in our old style 750ml. bottle and kegged a small quantity as well. It was pretty sweet while it lasted, we just might have to do it again.”

ABV: 9.0%
IBU: 55

(12/19/2009)

89. Southern Tier Imperial Coffee Stout Jah*va

Our third beer from Southern Tier (how’s that for the inadvertent rhyme?)—it would seem that we currently have a thing for Southern Tier’s big beers, wouldn’t it? Our first one was their Crème Brûlée, and the second beer was their Imperial Mokah. We had this beer with our Sunday morning breakfast of grits and eggs. That, my friends, is good livin’.

Jah*va exudes roasted coffee notes along with dark sweet aromas; a deep mahogany color with red highlights, it has a creamy tan head. Starting with thick dark sweetness, some low-level burnt notes, a subtle chocolate flavor, and a decent amount of roasted coffee flavor, Jah*va’s middle moves into the classic roasted and burnt malt flavors before transitioning back into a rich but soft coffee flavor to close out the beer. The thick and rich mouthfeel is both dense and smooth; there is a bit of a carbonation bite in the second third of the beer, and some slickness on the palate, but clean, flavorful, and enjoyable. As it warms, alcohol begins to emerge in the nose, along with more coffee aroma, and it also becomes more rounded—flavors across the palate start to marry better. As an accompaniment to our breakfast, Jah*va was an excellent choice—breakfast deserves this type of reward.

From the bottle: “Over three thousand feet above sea level in the misty mountains of Jamaica, some of the world’s finest beans are hand picked on their way to becoming Blue Mountain coffee. Halfway around the world, plump spring barley grows to maturity in the loamy soil of North America while aromatic hops are cultivated to exacting standards. Here in our kettles, these three special ingredients are blended to create a heady mixture of sweet sugar, dark roast, and complex flavor. Please enjoy this brew in moderation.”

ABV: 11%

OG: 27° P
Ingredients:
2-Row Pale malt
Caramel malt
Chocolate malt
Black malt
Roasted barley
Cascade and Columbus hops
Jamaican roasted coffee

Sorry, we didn’t have a snifter to serve it in. This was breakfast. So suck it up and deal.

(9/27/2009)

34. Southern Tier Imperial Mokah

“Dessert in a glass.”

Our second beer from Southern Tier Brewery, located in Lakewood, NY.

Southern Tier Imperial Mokah has a rich chocolate and roasted coffee nose—very delicious smelling—and a dark coffee-colored body with a creamy tan head. The beer begins with a sweet malt flavor, bringing with it chocolate and vanilla notes that range across the palate, before finishing with a dark coffee bitterness with lingers on the back of the tongue. Mokah has a creamy, rich, and thick mouthfeel; there is some alcohol warmth in it, especially at the end. While a delicious and interesting beer, Mokah could be a bit more stout-y: it could use more burnt and roasted notes to build the body and lessen the sweetness, and the bitterness that is apparent tastes like it is from the coffee only.

(someone can't resist hamming for the camera)

From Southern Tier’s website: “Mokah: a stout brewed with chocolate & coffee. When empirical and creative impulses collide, the result is often timeless. The classic utility-art aesthetic of the coffee maker is an example of design and engineering working in concert. It is through similar cooperation that the simple bitter cocoa bean is transformed into a sweet treat. As scientists, our brewers utilize their materials to exacting standards. As artists, they couldn’t resist the temptation to combine two of our highly acclaimed Blackwater Series Imperial Stouts: Jahva and Choklat. Alone each is perfect, but together as Mokah they are an inimitable expression of two of the world’s most sought after flavors. Enjoy Mokah stout with – or as – your favorite dessert!”

ABV: 10.9%

Color: 221ºL
OG: 27º P
Malt: 2-Row pale malt, 2-Row barley, Caramel, Chocolate & Black malts, Roasted barley, and Barley flakes
Other Ingredients: Jamaican roasted coffee and bittersweet Belgian chocolate
Hops: Chinook, Willamette, Cascade & Columbus

(8/3/2009)