Deschutes Black Butte XXI

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

Bottle thanks to Flacoalto. Pours a deep amber brown with a small tan head. Aroma is medium sweet, smoky, roast, cocoa, malt and a weird musty basement smell. Flavor is smoky, alcohol, cocoa and light fruit. Finishes silky smooth with just a touch of alcohol. Medium-full body, smooth texture.

This is actually a really amazing beer. Pours black with a thin tan head. Great aroma, full of chocolate and mainly coffee. Nice bourbon flavor and I would think the beer would age nicely. Great coffee flavor, I really enjoyed this beer. Hides the 11% well.

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.

Bottle. Pours a deep black with a really nice looking creamy brown head. Lots of lacing on the glass. Aroma of Chocolate, Coffee and Oak. Flavor is chocolate, molasses, some nice woody bourbon characteristics added from the whiskey barrel. Excellent mouthfeel and it finishes with a little hop bitterness in the end. The alcohol is extremely well hidden. Great brew!

Bottle courtesy Gillard. Thanks Ryan for such a tasty treat. Pours black with a one finger tan head that leaves good lacing. Aroma of coffee, dark chocolate, licorice, roasted malt, and a hint of smoke. Taste is the same as aroma with a heavy emphasis on coffee and a hint of oak. Medium mouthfeel with a moderate to strong amount of bitterness and well hidden alcohol. A damn fine brew.

7-27-08 bottle shared with lb4b thanks to ditmier
Dark black pour with a thin tan creamy head. Smell is malt and is sweet with a touch of coffee and perhaps then a touch of rubbing alcohol. Flavor is malty and sweet and a touch of dusty cardboard. Mouthfeel is decent - nothing spectacular.

Many thanks to drgonzo for cracking open this amazing brew. Thick, burnt brown/black body with a frothy brown head and streaky lacing. In your face aroma of bitter dark chocolate, creamy coffee and layers upon layers of burnt, roasted, toasted malts. Plenty of molasses along with some fig and raisin notes. Viscous with a mellow creaminess and just an ever so faint alcohol bite. Drinks slowly and sticks with you. A solid bitterness helped to even things out. Flavor mirrors the intense aroma but the hops are much more noticeable. Big, bold and wonderful. A bountiful, beautiful brew.

22oz bottle. Enjoyed at the cabin with Scott and John. A very dark pour, as you might expect. Off white brown head. The aroma has a touch of wood & bourbon as well as coffee and malty roasted grains. The flavor is creamy coffee, bourbon, vanilla with wood notes and semi-sweet chocolate. Very pleasing. Creamy smooth mouth feel with a bit of semi-dry finish that seems related to the semi-dry chocolate more than anything. Very enjoyable. Glad I have a second bottle.