Bear Republic Big Bear Black Stout

Brewed by Bear Republic Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Healdsburg, California USA

22 oz. bottle from Grape & Gourmet. Pours black with a creamy tan head. Understated aroma of roasted malt and some dark chocolate. Flavor is much more powerful with strong roasted malt flavor, smoke, dark chocolate, and some bittering hops. Not as thick as some Imperial Stouts but at 8.1% it is not as high in alcohol either. Nothing to complain about with this one but there is no real WOW factor either. Still, a very good beer.

Pours jet black opaque with a medium to big tan head and nice lacing. Nose of mocha. Mocha taste with some obvious hops adding a peppery woodiness to the flavor. Mildly spicy hop finish with some of the roasty mocha flavor lingering underneath. As the commercial description claims, alcohol taste is almost totally hidden.

Large Bottle. Pours a very deep heavy black color with a nice mocha-colored head. Aromas are not too strong, but there are some hints of chocolate with the main aroma being roasted malts. The flavor is very appealing, although it does have more of an imperial porter flavor to me than that of the typical imperial stout (especially of the Russian variety). There are a lot of deep flavors, and the balance between the hops and the exceptionally smooth malts is very nice. The beer certainly gets better as it comes closer to room temperature, and the relatively high abv is well masked by the intense flavors.

Dark brown-black pour with a small but creamy tan head. Aroma of roasted coffee and chocolate, with a hint of sweet maltiness.

Bottle at DLD 09 ... Now im sure i drunk in one of these years ago on a visit to the states and remember it being disapointing ... so this was good to see as reasonably decent ... black ... toasted malts ... little roast nose... light roast malts ... little tofeee ... some coffee.

More an imperial porter than a stout. Very nice roasted malts and a fair bit of hops. Maybe everyone going SO FAR OVERBOARD has made this seem mild but, well, this seems mild. Very drinkable, and a fantastic price. But nothing I would continually seek out. Maybe I had I had some unrealistic expectations though,. because I adore Bear Republic.

Pours Jet Black with a finger of light chocolate colored head. Smells of Bitter chocolate and coffee. The Taste is dominating bitter chocolate but with a bit of smoky flavors. Slick, Medium-Bodied. Overall it drinks very well. At just over $4, I could put too many of these down in a sitting.

Beer 30, Big Bear Stout Ale by Bear Republic Brewing Co http://www.bearrepublic.com/ourbeers.php Bear Republic Brewing Co @ www.bearrepublic.com Beer Style: Russian Imperial Stout Serving Size: 22 oz Bottle, ABV 8.1% Purchased on 4/30/09 and Drank on 4/30/09 4 out of 5 on over all drink-ability Aroma: Mild and complex aroma with notes of dried fruits, dark chocolate and roasted grain. Appearance: Black with tan head. Flavor: Smooth flavors of roasted grains and dried fruits. Mouth Feel: Full body with effervescence on the sides of the tongue Overall Impression: Mellow. The beer is well balanced and the flavors are lighter that I would expect for a Russian Imperial stout. The 22 ounces went down a quickly and easily.