Deschutes The Abyss

Bottled. Pitch black colour, small beigeish brown colour. Aroma is wooden, licoriceish, dark dry fruity along with coffee and roasted malts. Flavour is a bit roasted, quite caramel malty, licoriceish, alcoholic as well as mildly sweet wooden notes being in the background. A wellbalanced imperial stout.

2007. completely opaque black with a dense brown head. some spots of spotty lacing between spots of paint-like lacing. the aroma is really rich and roasty... dark fruit, coffee, pine hops, chocolate, grain, earth, vanilla and some booze. palate isn*t at all sweet as the aroma would make it seem. rather, it is really dry, bitter and hoppy. the flavor is dense and intensely robust... rich roasted grains, chocolate, coffee, cream, ash, oaky/wood, vanilla, grassy hops, pine, earth, dark fruit and young california cabernet depth. alcohol and lots of hoppiness dominate the finish. the aftertaste is huge!... an abundance of whole dark roasted coffee beans. ashiness and astringency linger and dry out the mouth. borderline full body with low carbonation and a slick suave mouth feel. though it*s kept quite drinkable by hoppy dryness...8/5/9/4/18/4.4

2008 sampled shortly after release. there seems to be noticeably more dirty licorice root and bourbon spice in the aroma and flavor profiles. while the palate is sweeter it has more tannic structure which, combined with hoppy dryness keeps me coming back...9/5/8/4/18/4.4

An incredible imperial stout. Great taste and it also hits you very hard. Definitely worth the high price for at least a try if not more.

everything about this beer is dark, even the aroma. not as much oak as i would have expected in this super rich full boddied and almost viscous syrupy stout. has a nice sandy head that holds it own. a bit of spice. i wouldn’t call it a disappointment but it was not quite what i was looking for, but i was nice.

(Bottled, 0.66l) Black with a smallish, beige head. Roasty, very malty aroma with vanilla oakiness. Very smoothly malty flavor with some minty feel, moderate bitter hoppiness, oaky vanilla. Almost full-bodied, low-carbonated. Slightly too bitter, but otherwise a beautiful brew.

Bomber thanks to kmweaver. Almost black in color with a brown head. Aroma is roasty, with chocolate, oak, caramel and light notes of vanilla. Taste is alot of chocolate, moderately roasty, caramel, burnt sugars, and oak. Light on the bourbon, apparent but barely so. Finishes roasty and lightly bitter/astringent. very nice.

2006 Batch. Pours out black with a large, dark tan head. The head has amazing retention and leaves plenty of lacing. Smell has a hint of hops but this one seems more about the malt. I get plenty of roasty, chocolate-y, licorice and a bit of currants in the nose. Maybe even a little bit of oak and the slightest hint of vanilla. Taste seems to begin with some bittered chocolate and some licorice before dark fruit starts to come in, it ends up with a strong, roasty finish. I seem to get a bit of oak as well, some alcohol is noticeable too. Full bodied with carbonation on the lighter side; dry, roasty finish. This one is a sipper, but a damn good one. Definitely worth seeking out.

This beer is a winner. Pours jet black with a thin reddish brown head. Leaves a brown flim on the glass. Aroma is pure chocolate and malt. Flavor is dark chocolate, roasted malts and some coffee. I do taste hops as well. This beer is a huge imp stout, but it also offers some finesse.