BrewDog Paradox Glen Grant (Batch 003)

Brewed by BrewDog
Style: Imperial Stout
Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Bottle: (Thanks Andy!) Dark, near opaque pour with a tan ring of head. Nose is boozy, but pleasant and balanced. Has notes of mild vanilla, piny wood, dark chocolate liqueur, and very subtle smoke (earthy character) Slick body, with a nice bitter/sweet chocolate presence in the flavor. That solid malt base is well integrated with the smooth boozy character and has a nice oak presence. As it warms there’s some mocha-chip-like qualities, making it reminiscent of chocolate covered coffee beans. Has a smooth roasted finish with subtle oak residuals. Well integrated and smooth. A tasty one.

Bottle ordered online, though apparently it is now available locally. Swirling this initially reveals an ugly, formaldehyde aroma, but after sitting for a couple minutes that disappears and a very deep, complex aroma shows up, with light chocolate, scotch, brine, and seaweed. Very deep in flavor, with a perfect briny scotch, not overwhelming, but relaxed and great The scotch notes in this are top notch.

11.2oz bottle, courtesy of argo0. Thanks, Aaron! We did a side-by-side of four of these (Islay 009, Speyside 010, Macallan 011, Glen Grant 003), and they looked nearly identical: dark, murky brown color; thin, light-tan head with fine-bubbled lacing. Lots of dried dark fruits, nougat, and caramel in the aroma; pretty similar to the Speyside 010, with additional toasty vanilla; very chocolatey, showing the beer beneath. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: lots of chewy, toasty vanilla and dried dark fruits (dates, raisins); very toasty and lots of vanilla coming through from the barrel; nicely toasty and viscous, with a soft barrel presence. Tasty stuff. Lengthy finish: toasty malts, caramel, and chocolate; nicely dry.

Black with a short lived creamy tan head. Roasty aroma with chocolate and alcohol notes. Smooth velvety palate. Chocolate, berries, dark roasted coffee, and mellow scotch taste. Very smooth finish with warming scotch tastes lingering in the back of the throat.

Courtesy growler. Pours a dark and translucent mahogany brown with a small, bubbly, tan edge. Wet, spotty lacing mostly finds its way back into the body. The aroma is very smooth and subtle for a Paradox beer, still chocolaty, but less smoky and peaty than others within the series. Vanilla is prominent, perhaps indicating that these barrels saw less charring than others, if any at all? Flavors too are smooth, chocolate and vanilla dominating the subtle hints of peaty scotch that linger within. There’s a slightly sour twang on the finish, almost like that of a Kentucky style whiskey. The body seems to be less substantial than other Paradox’s for some reason. Overall, I think its the most boring, mundane beer within the series, though still quite drinkable.

black with ruby highlights under a small creamy tan head. chocolate, coffee, and mild woody bourbon scotch notes. flavor has notes of vanilla, coconut, bourbon, wood, milk chocolate, even some chocolate covered pineapple. medium bodied. low carbonation with a silky texture. gets sweeter and more chocolaty as it warms. tough decision but i think i liked the macallan the best.

Bottle from John’s in Portland--Poured a deep deep brown body (opaque) with little head. Nose of bold whiskey notes with other sharp complexities. A little one dimensional for the style. Perhaps needed to age longer. Some vanilla and chocolate hints, but a little hot and trying too hard.

this thing pours a pan-reduced blood color or black to the untrained eye. Very thin sheet of off-white suds atop. Nose is predominately roasty and earthy with notes of chocolate and cola, Custardy mouthfeel with vanilla induced flavors...chocolate mousse, with pretty chewy scotch characteristics. Carbonation is on the low side making the beer somewhat syrupy. Somewhat of a bitter finish. It’s not bad, its unique for the scotchy flavors, but it doesn’t wow me by any means. .