Alaskan Stout

Brewed by Alaskan Brewing Co
Style: Sweet Stout
Juneau, Alaska USA

purchased in CO; drank in TX. Very dark with small tan head. aroma was subdued - sweet, vanilla, chocolate? great smooth palate and flavor slight carbonation in taste. would have liked a little more flavor but this was a very good beer; will have again in winter... Had again - great winter session beer!!

Bottle, via trade with beerbill,dark chocolate color with tan foam, aroma of dark fruit and chocolate, flavors of dark fruit, chocolate , malt and licorice

On tap at the Brewery. Dark and rich, with little head. Shows the alcohol a little more than anticipated.

12oz bottle courtesy of savnac poured into a tulip. Pours almost completely black in the glass with a decent-sized beige head that dissipates very quickly to a small ring that lingers for the duration. The aroma is mainly dark chocolate malts with some sweet vanilla and roasted coffee. I think I get some oats as well, but I’m not sure if I would have if I didn’t know it was there. It’s an interesting aroma that’s very sweet yet roasted as hell. The taste is dominated by the sweet toasted malts. There’s plenty of sweet chocolate thrown in as well as some caramel. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with a low carbonation and makes the overall mouthfeel slick and sweet. The oatmeal adds a bit but doesn’t make this as smooth as I would have expected. Overall, it’s a very drinkable stout with a dominant sweetness and a nice roasted malt backbone. Solid effort from Alaskan.

12 oz bottle
Thanks to a kind soul for sending this along as a bonus in a trade quite a few months ago. I don’t know why it has taken this long to get around to cracking it open but if Alaskan ever expands to the Midwest I will definitely be spreading the word about this gem.

Aroma / Appearance - The bubbly soft head looks so delicate it was like whipped cream the color of paper that has broken down in sunlight. Mildly black and fluid the base beneath released a wonderful mixture of warm oatmeal cookies fresh from the oven, a sprinkle of sugar, and cedar flakes. The total impression is one of subtlety and lightness.

Flavor / Palate - Chewy and fluid as if you were to make a smoothie from oatmeal cookies this washes cleanly across the palate. Warm chocolate and cigar ash blend with blackberry to form a nice sessionable experience that does not fatigue. This is a great example of a daily drinking stout. A step up from the ubiquitous Guinness this one is worth seeking it on a trip to the West Coast.

I may have poored this a bit heavy handedly into a tumpler (tumpler?... I like that typo, so I think I’ll keep it) pint glass, but the result was a nice, mocha tan 1.5 finger head that dissipated rather quickly. I now have a thin layer of head sitting on top of this attractive, midnight black stout. While the consistency of the beer looks to be a touch watery, I like what’s left of the head and how it lurches down the glass wall with a few swirls of the tumbler. There’s not much to the smell of this beer beyond the sugary sweetness that blasts you right out of the gates. Malty to say the least and I want to say that it’s more of a burnt scent that I’m getting than toasty. Just as I suspected, this beer is extremely sweet to start out. Unfortunately, just like the smell, I don’t get much that’s desirable beyond the super sweet, burnt malts right at the front. a few seconds in, an alcohol bite hits the back of the throat and the finish is just like the smell; a strange burnt taste that is a bit off putting. however, the lingering finish to this beer is its saving grace with some nice oats creeping back up my pallet. I really do appreciate the mouthfeel on this one. it’s not quite as watery as the appearance would suggest, and I do love me some full bodied stout. I wouldn’t say this is full bodied by any means, it’s definitely a medium bodied beer and it’s perfect for this style. I can’t say that this beer is largely drinkable as I don’t really enjoy it so much. It’s not overly alcoholic, but its sweet transition into alcohol just simply turns me off. I can see how some may enjoy it, but its just not for me.

aroma is roast malt. thin and black with a tan head. good but weak and watery

Dark roasted oats, chocolate, and raisin aroma, not strong. Black with a medium tan head. Flavor is molasses, raisins, and charcoal. Smoky grass finish with licorice notes when warm.. Good balance, thinnish mouthfeel.