Deschutes The Abyss

2007 bottle courtesy of iowaherkeye. Pours black with the prettiest dark tan head that slowly subsides. Aroma of rich sweet malt, oatmeal, coffee, molasses, and just a touch of bourbon. Flavor of sweet molasses and sweet malt, smoked and charred malt with some woodsy notes. Thick mouthfeel with an alcohol burn in the finish. Just a little bourbon, which works well for me. This gets a little too sweet by the end and is a bit hard to drink. I liked it but would prefer better drinkability.

Bottle. Aroma starts off with a strong coffee character before developing into a blend of coffee, chocolate, molasses, and complex notes from the subtle bourbon aging that seem to come and go, sometimes with more bourbon, sometimes with more wood, sometimes with more alcohol sweetness. Flavor is big with the same notes, and I continued to be impressed with the subtle yet tantalizing bourbon component. Bitterness arrives cumulatively in the form of hops, bitter coffee, and intensely roasted malt as the glass goes down, building on the tongue and in the back of the mouth, balancing out all the sweetness in a businesslike but necessary manner. Huge creamy mouthfeel. Great beer.

pours thick with a small brown head. the aroma has lots of spice in it and some nice hops. Flavor was bitter, with a burnt coffee and some hops. It hid the 11% alcohol very well. All in all this is a good beer though a bit one dimensional on flavor.

Thick black pour with a red brown head. Very nice looking, although a bit thinner than other imperial stouts. Very spicy hoppy aroma, surprising for this style. Coffee and cream as well as some floral notes. Hoppy bitter flavor. Very dry. Chocolate, coffee and cream. Lots of alcohol lingers in the mouth.

A black appearance with a moderate tan head. The aroma is dark chocolate, coffee, licorice, raisins, and some alcohol. The flavor is rather sweet with more dark chocolate, coffee, molasses, and raisins. The finish is very smooth considering the ABV. Overall a very good beer!