Coast Range Russian Imperial Stout

Formerly brewed at Coast Range Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Gilroy, California USA

Pours black, with a light brown head. Aromas are chocolate, coffee, roasted malt, and dark fruit. Flavors are dark fruit, chocolate, coffee, roasted malt, and a bit of nuts and hops. Body is medium to heavy and it hides the alcohol pretty well. Thanks to Davecooks for this bottle.

Looks like a fine Imp, very dark brown in color with a brown head that rims my glass and hasn’t dissipated. Aroma is sweet and fruity. Plums and figs immediately come to mind. A bit of chocolate in the mix too. Pretty little on the roast flavors. Hops come in on the palate which full and slightly tart and a bit of rotting leaves comes in too. Tartness lingers on through out the finish. Very good beer, thanks Mitch!

Penetrable black. Extremely fine-sized cinnamon bubbles adorn the glass. Astonishingly complex nose of espresso, ink, smoke, dark chocolate, dried plums, and nougat dribbled with port and soy sauce. Delicately roasty and burnt. Dense, soft level of carbonation. Silken malts gracefully greet the palate and curtail the alcohol, as a rich espresso and bittersweet truffle layered richness takes foothold. Body gains more lushness with a bready malt kiss, which is further enhanced by a hint of burnt caramel. Despite being hugely beefy and fulfilling, it’s just as exquisite. Alcohol invigorates the palate and warms the chest, but never detracts. Beautifully incorporated milk chocolate complements the vinousness. Dainty, but robustly textured, roast simultaneously generates a dash of acidity and earthiness which offsets the slight mushiness and dried plum notes. Finishes inky-soft and rounded, with a remarkably composed fusion of chocolate truffles, toasted grains, over a roasted, semi-charred anchor of malt. How this conceals its 11.4% strength is beyond me. The aroma matches the mouthfeel (which feels as if it were cask conditioned) to produce one of the best one-two combinations I’ve ever experienced in a beer. Simply a stupendous version. Thanks, irishsnake.

wow. this is ridiculously good. opens up at a warm 55-56 degrees fahrenheit. viscous feeling, and oily. black and feels like quicksilver on the tongue. bits of anise and coffee, slight nut spice, bits of date and fig, a thick heavy cream, some alcohol apparent though this doesn’t change much over temp. palpable yeast. wow. one of the most impressive beers of the year.

7 oz bottle, labeled 10th Anniversary Beer. pours an apropriate deep black with a pretty minimal brown head that descends to a small collar that leaves good lace. nose is rich and chocolatey, with a little sugary booziness around the side. flavor is thick and rich, with lots of chocolate malt notes and sweetness. dries out a bit at the end, with a bit of an alcohol burn coming in, along with some licorice. pretty good RIS - lots of malt, and the yeast doesn’t seem over-stressed.

GABF 2005: Opaque with a small lasting beige head. The aroma is very malty and fruity and a bit phenolic, sharp bitter hop notes as well. The taste starts twangy (grape and plum), woody and earthy with some vanilla and mocha tones. Finished with a light smoke and coffee bitterness. The feel is oily but also thin with some noticeable alcohol present. Drinkable and overall well made.

Deepest coffee coloured beer that produces no head. Immediately alcoholic nose that would gain from being fruity, but it leans more toward brash alcohol induced roastiness. A bit simple for an imperial stout, the straightforward chocolate flavours and coffee latte usuals are only helped by a remarkably soft and round palate.

Bottled. No head even when poured from six inches over the glass, only the whisp of some tan bubbles rim the glass. Deep chocolate aromas along with some fruits. The flavors seem unblended and young; alcohol, chocolate and smoke along with coffee and tobacco flavors. Thin mouthfeel for an Impy but still has tons of alcohol, almost too much. This will be a great beer in a year or two. Pretty good now.