Deschutes The Abyss

Brewed by Deschutes Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Bend, Oregon USA

Black; small brown head. Rich, burnt malt aroma. Very rich, burnt/toasty malts, bourbon, bitter chocolate, hops, subtle vanilla and chalk - with some aging gets really tasty and intriguing. Excellent overal for those seeking the dark side of beer richness. Tried numerous times in bottles over the past two seasons, and on tap recently at Churchill’s and PP Carlsbad.

Bottle from Windy City Liquor. I was so very relieved after I got my hands on this bottle since I had been hearing about it for couple of months now. The aroma is a delighting smell of dark chocolate malts with a very tiny hint of cream or milk. The appearance is a pitch black stout rested in peace with a firm layer of head. The flavor is a strong and bold tasting of roasted malt but yet has a minor taste of chocolate still. The palate is rich and creamy which leaves behind an excellent finish along with a moderate dryness. This should have been distributed more than it was.

Bomber, big shout out to Tronraner, the man responsible for putting this in my possession. Pouring this stuff is comical. It’s almost like a parody of imperial stouts, it is ridiculously thick and pitch black. Lacing on the goblet is like a wall and the head, though tiny, is brown. The aroma wasn’t all that great at first, but this beer was way too cold. I got strong sweet, cola scents at first, but when this neared the appropriate serving temperature that disappeared and was replaced by pleasing espresso, cacao, earth, an ashy nuttiness, and molasses. It’s a wonder what temperature can do. But as complex and pleasing as the nose is on Abyss, it isn’t strongly aromatic. The flavor is a different story altogether. It wallops my palate with dense espresso and a very drying bittersweetness. I was actually concerned this would be too sweet, given the addition of molasses, licorice, and the barrel aging, but it is not to sweet at all. Any sugary character is deep and is always countered by a heavy roasted or dry quality. Wow. This is seriously good. A few more sips and my palate is quite pleased. An almost milky quality is noticed along with hints at hickory. God, this stuff is thick.

Velvetty smooth. Choarcoal notes. Slight oak. Big chocolate. Very nice, and drinkable. Would like to sit down with a bottle and do this again.

Big bottle via trade. Was it SSS (summer secret santa)? It was a great day for beer, a great tasting, the first of many. Unfortunately my ratings and most of my memory fell into The Abyss. I remember the black rich liquid, the brown head, the intoxicating effect of the beer. The silk tar sliding across my palate. And most of all my desire after losing my carefully crafted notes to find more, a lot more.

Bottle from The Wine Smith in Placerville. This brew had excellent control on the palate, despite having complex flavors of chocolate, licorice, and molasses as a thick stout. There was also great balance on the amount of carbination and control of the ~87 BTU. It poured deep, used engine oil color with very limited head. I’ll buy this again in a second. One of the best from the US.

Timfoolery scored this bottle on a trip to El Dorado county. Smelled of licorice and brown sugar. It poured a used engine oil black and so thick that I thought I may have to chew it on the way down. Complex flavor, with sweet malty goodness matched perfectly with the right amount of hops. I enjoyed the journey

Tap. Wow, this is delicious! Huge aroma and even more ginormous flavors. Molasses and malt and oaky burbon, all with a thick chewy coating presence on my tongue. Very complex and all around butt kicker of a beer. I had 2 full pints!