Caskalefan (24), Bellingham, Washington, USA
Mar 21, 2006 Pours an opaque black with a huge, deep tan head that rapidly dissipates to form a lasting ring, leaving some nice lacing.
The aroma is a lovely chocolate/coffee, and slightly spicy.
The mouthfeel is full, without being really thick and chewy, which makes this one easier to drink than the top heavyweights like Speedway, and Dark Lord.
I find the flavor to be wonderfully deep, and savory, with notes of roast coffee, bitter chocolate, toffee, and a few flavors that I can’t pin down. I suspect that when this brew has aged a bit, it will reveal wonderful complexity, and give the best of the Imperials a run for their money.
There is a really nice hop kick to this one, somewhat reminiscent of the early version of Grant’s Russian Imperial Stout from the 80s, which rounds out the flavor profile nicely, and the finish, and aftertaste are very long and appetizing.
Kudos, once again, go to Arlen , my favorite Northwest Brewer!
 JorisPPattyn (4282), Antwerpen, Belgium
Apr 25, 2006 End-of-scale dark brown beer with dark brown greige head. Very aromatic nose with chocolate, dark fruit, rosewater, alcohol - brandylike. Then great aromatic USA hops creep in, blending to perfection with the chocolate cake, the alcohol and the rest. Ends like brandy-lashed raspberry jam (well, more brandy than jam). Excellently balanced nose. Dry, hoppy, cardboard, musci flavours, then chocolate, spruce or pine, with more discreet but present hops. There’s chocolate cake sweetness, underneath a wealth of aromatic, diverse bitterish flavours. Complex as usually only the best Belgian beers are. Rich, velvety, puckering dry with little background burning; full bodied, of course. Insanely good stout - thanks a million, Arlen.
I do not know about a ’snifter’ - I poured it in a "Cuvée de l’Ermitage" chalice, and it worked to perfection...
lilannie (381), State College, Pennsylvania, USA
Apr 12, 2006 Aroma: coffee, soft smoke, milk, some bananas, weed, some pine needles, and alcohol
Appearance: dark brown-->black, lacing, small off-white head
Flavor: strong irish cream, milk, chocolate, espresso, alcohol, coffee beans, and smokiness
Palate: smooth, creamy, with strong espresso aftertaste
Odeed (1482), Bakersfield, California, USA
May 9, 2007 (2005 bottle by way of "the man" aka footbalm)black as midnight on Halloween with a thick dark brown head.aroma reminds me a lot of expedition.black liquorice,chocolate,coffee,figs,raisins,used motor oil,smoke,and molasses all make up the complex and deep aroma.flavor shoots of in a bit of a different direction.although it still keeps alot of the characteristics of the aroma.i do however pick up a bit of sourness,and some bitterness that lingers on after the finish.all in all its really good and im really glad i got to try it.
IslandHaole (1028), Onna-Son, Okinawa-Ken, Japan
Jun 22, 2007 I’ve been holding this one for a special occasion, as some of you know, tomorrow is the RBSG that I planned on attending this year, but....my son graduates HS tomorrow so this is as close as I will get to the beer festivities.
Black as night with a foamy light brown head. Sweet molasses mixes with mineral salt and unsweetened bakers chocolate, charcoal, tawny port, quite tasty. Seems to get sweeter as it warms. A nice example of why I love Impy’s.
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