Deschutes The Abyss

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

2007 batch. (Accidentally frozen, oops, and then unaccidentally thawed. Seems no worse for wear! oily dark black brown with a medium tan thin head. Deep dark sweet roast. Very much round, mostly roast. A big piny hop note seems to pop into the roast and alcohol. Anise perhaps? Luxurious mouthfeel. Slick, viscous with lower carbonation. Some serious substance. Big brash bold impy stout. Huge roast, murky dark sweetness. Alcohol, piny hops. Licorice. If there is oak, it is very sublte and bourbon seems absent other than some hints of vanilla. Really a lovely beer. Subtle and bold where it ought to be!

Time to catch up before BCTC. Bottle at PilsnerPeter’s Spring Throwdown. Thank to everyone who brought great beer and ribs and pickles and everything! Black with dark brown ring and lace. Coffee wood chocolate aroma. RICH esspresso bitterness chocolate mild bitter fruit. RICH! Very bitter. Smooth creamy. Awesome!

bomber from a trade with SuzyGreenburg. pours black with a perfect tan head and perfect carbonation. aromas are chocolate, coffee, roasted malts. lingerings hops are also present. flavours are similar. while there is a lot goin on this imppy it seems very subdued and relaxed. its fantastic but it doesnt try to over power you and push you around. im very glad to that i got to enjoy this one.

Bottle from ebay, sampled with Stegosaurus. WOW. Beautiful black pour with aromas of chocolate, coffee and roast. A smoke roast chocolate flavor blended rather well. This is underated.

Bottle: Deep blackness with a dark tan head. Heavy charcoal aromas, yogurt bacteria, and coffee grounds. The taste is powerful - charcoal and bitter coffee, not too sweet. This is how I prefer imperial stouts to be. I do taste the licorice at the very end of the aftertaste. The more I drink this, the more I love it. This is all it is talked up to be! Thanks Indiana_Red for sharing this hard to get in Boise brew!

Bottle courtesy of bitbucket. Excellent beer. Bourbon and oak notes are very subtle. This beer isn’t in your face like a Bourbon County. The usual stout flavors dominate, with undertones of smoke, bourbon, and oak. Excellent.

07 bottle poured a dark brown in color with a small but thick tan head. aroma has brown sugar, dark chocolate, molasses, coffee, and a bit of bourbon soaked wood. mouth feel is thick and coating. flavor is really hefty, rich chocolate, coffee, molasses, toffee, light roast, licorice, and a nice bitter snap towards the end. this one did not get overpowering on the sweetness end and allowed the flavors to all come across without crushing your tasters.

A 2007 bottle from lb4lb via trade. The pour was ultra dark and semi-viscous. A short tan head popped up was gone again in a flash. The aroma was of a fairly straight forward, but well put together IS. Coffee, chocolate, hops, oak and some lighter sweetness we can attribute to the molasses. The flavor was espresso, chocolate, pine hops and more sweetness than was evident in the aroma. Above average mouthfeel, nice dryness.