Deschutes Black Butte XXI

Brewed by Deschutes Brewery
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Bend, Oregon USA

Draft and several different bottle samples. Black with a frothy tan head. Medium strong aromas of roasted malts, cocoa, with some oak. Silky smooth, rich mouthfeel. Great taste is rich Belgian dark chocolates, mild roast coffee and roasted nuts with some vinous sweetness. The oak flavors and aroma are in the background here and just adds to the depth. This is Obsidian on steriods, love it !

Bottle and served in my Expedition snifter: Deep brown with ruby highlight, soft creamy tan head left very good lace upon the glass. The aroma has notes of bourbon barrel (vanilla, oak, apricot, and booze) along with chocolate, roasted malt, walnut, and some espresso esters. The taste starts malty sweet and hints of dark fruits. Midsection displays some nutty notes along with chocolate. The finish is smoky (charred) and is where you can find the barrel influence more. The mouth feel is medium-bodied, not to hot but you do get the booze after awhile. All in all this is a solid STRONG / IMPERIAL/ ROBUST PORTER!

Bottle, shared by durhambeer. Thanks Bob! Pour is dark brown with a small tan head. Nose has a bit of oak, vanilla, coffee--very dry. Flavor is similar with a bit of dark fruits, light bourbon, chocolate, more coffee and wood.

yeah, I have to re-rate this one after trying it again. Nice pour with tall brown head, aroma of coffee, a little bit of bourbon, some roasted malts and maybe a touch of vanilla. Flavor is all over the place as well. Bourbon is definitely noticeable, but you also get the underlying porter flavors... Medium mouthfeel.... Better than I thought last year

Near black and oily-looking. Big aroma of coffee, light chocolate, and light bourbon. Big, fat, tangy brew with lots of coffee, some chocolate, thick dark malts, light raisins. Finishes sweet, slightly fruity and reatively beany.

Pours jet black with a half inch head of tan. The thinnish head fell to a partial skim-coat within two minutes, leaving behing a few dots of lacework. Aromatics are laced with dark chocolate, espresso, vanilla, oak char, and light bourbon. Roasty, deep, and complex. The bourbon is subdued, but adds some great complexity and the vanilla is wonderfull. Thickish bodied and extremely creamy. Almost like a nitro-pour. Highly balanced on the pallet. Rich, bitter chocolate, dark roast coffee, oaky tannins, and vanilla-steeped bourbon. Slightly acrid and heavily roasty. Finishes with a hint of warming bourbon on the throat, some sweet caramel, and lingering chocolate, vanilla, and espresso. Wowza, great beer. Very mature and smooth for a fresh bottle. The bourbon is a bit subdued, as is the case with The Abyss. It plays a supporting role as opposed to stealing the show.

Pours a dark brown/black. Aroma of chocolate, ash, tobacco, wood? Flavor of burnt malts, chocolate and smoke. Smooth and creamy, excellent porter.

Bomber bottle for $12 at Wine Stop. Pours a deep dark brown. Aroma of coffee, roasts, sugar and molasses. Surprisingly sweet and pungent aroma. Flavor is initially – to me – massively syrupy and sweet. I tasted licorice, molasses, brown sugar, and some baking chocolate. Mid palate remains sweet and strong, but with a bit of coffee starting to come to the forefront. Finish is just an intense mixture of flavors, there is no way around this. There is dark smooth chocolate. There is a rich espresso. There is an undeniable sweet molasses flavor. And there are roasts. Wow! I really can’t say much more, this is a BIG beer. Overall, this is something very special, although I must raise my minor qualms: once this beer warms, it just gets too intense. Too syrupy and big sweet. I actually enjoyed this more when it was a bit chilled. Undeniably a memorable offering though.