Deschutes Black Butte XXI

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

Appearance: Well, it certainly is black, there’s no question there. Finish it off with a frothy, bubbly, tan-colored head and we’re ready to make our way to Buttetown. Smell: Pungent aroma smelling of dark chocolate, coffee, and roasted malts supported by all those well-integrated, delightful barrel hints of maple, charred wood barrels, and fresh coconut. Taste: Sweetish dark malts shell out a deep chocolaty taste followed by a sharp roastiness that soon mellows into a generalized coffee flavor. Ah, and there’s the blooming, drying barrel character from which the flavor gleans hints of shaved coconut, wood, and bourbon. A drop or two of maple syrup. Minor fruitiness. Earthy, roasty bitterness. Rather warming all the while, even through to the roasty finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-full body. Medium carbonation. Creamy mouthfeel. Drinkability: Recommended. This is all kinds of good! If you’re into rich, complex beers full of dense layers of endless subtleties then Deschutes Black Butte XX might be right up your alley. Right up it!

GABF 2007. I got last pour... and thought they’d have more the next day... nope. This beer poured to a black body with a nice creamy light brown head. The aroma was hugely roasted. Licorice, coffee, chocolate, nice roast. The flavor was a superbly balanced mocha java and roasted black malts. Very complex and quite awesome. I hope they bottle this one.

Sampled at Bocky Bash on 7-5-08. Roasted coffee aroma stood out. Black body with tan head. Roasted coffee and coco flavors with a creamy body texture. Smooth considering the alcohol content. Good brew thanks Dave.

What a change from their Belgian wit! Smells a bit strongly of alcohol. Flavor is rich, strong, and an excellent blend of the competing elements. Roasty. A good strong finish. A top notch brew.

22 oz bottle. Pours a clear dark brown body with a one finger fizzy dark brown head. Some decent retention for being so thin looking. The nose has loads of coffee. Cocoa, roast, light vanilla, wood, and maybe a bit of bourbon. Very thick and hearty smelling. The flavor is dry and roasty up front with lots of cocoa powder. A slight astringent bite going on. Fades to a very lightly bourbon laced finish with touches of oak. Mouthfeel is pretty full and thick with moderate fizzy prickly carbonation. Much sweeter on the lingering finish. Overall, this was alright, but not one that blew me away at all.

22oz bottle. Pours a very dark, chocolate-brown color; light-tan head with good retention and fine-bubbled lacing. Lots of dark chocolate, nougat, and toasty malts in the aroma; toasted malts and lightlly toasty barrel notes. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: lots of bitter chocolate, nougat, and intense roasted / charred malts upfront; light barrel notes: toasty vanilla, burnt / charred malts, and bitter chocolate; intense, soft-edged barrel aging. Lengthy finish: bitter chocolate, toasted malts, and nougat; sweet and plenty of heaviness.

A vigorous pour into my New Belgium globe goblet produces three-fingers of tightly beaded, browned, dark tan colored froth. The beer is opaque and black, though it does show a hint of a red tint if held up directly to the light. The aroma definitely has lots of chocolate to it as this is the first thing I notice as I am pouring it. Once I focus on the aroma though the chocolate takes more of a back seat to the roast aromatics and warm alcohol esters. The roast character smells distinctly of deeply roasted coffee; sharp, slightly acrid with a burnt, acidic edge and even a bit of char. Towards the end some toasted grain notes become noticeable, sort of like browned saltine crackers, but these notes are fairly soft. This has a fruitiness to it that is reminiscent of roasted prunes and blackened raisins.

Quite sweet tasting, with more fruit and less roast character than the aroma would have suggested. The fruitiness has notes of berries, raisins and figs that all have a charred note to them. The finish has notes of bitter, darkly roasted coffee and some light oak spiciness to it as well as some soft warming notes from the alcohol. While this is chewy and slightly viscous it definitely drinks lighter than its 11% alcohol; it almost has a lightness to it & I would have expected this to be a lot more thick and creamy. Sweet, roasted flavors of molasses and chocolate syrup move to bright, coffee notes in the middle and finally finishes with charred malt, a burnt acidity and a lingering roasted bitterness in the finish. The oak / bourbon notes are quite subtle / hidden; just noticed in the finish with the spicy bourbon-barrel notes accenting the warming alcohol notes a bit.

An interesting beer. The flavors and aromatics don’t integrate and work as well together as they should, thought the individual components are pretty good. In the end it can be a bit too thin, a bit too acrid and a bit too bitter to be really good. Still a tasty tipple and certainly enjoyable.

Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ

Best after 10/17/2010. 22oz bottle, 2009 Vintage. Deschutes’ 21th birthday. Porter brewed with chocolate beans and coffee added with 20% aged in bourbon barrels. Black wax. Dominican Republic cocoa beans and Ethiopian coffee.

Dark brown / black pour, light tan head. Aroma of earthy coffee beans, charred grains, cocoa, chilies, oak soaked in bourbon. Flavor is a lot of toasted malts. Nice roast. Distant coffee flavors. Nice presence of chocolate malts. Earthy flavor. Very nice cocoa, bourboned oak lingers on the palate. A very great Oregon Brew. Great!