Deschutes The Abyss

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

Bottle from trade with fiver29. Poured dark brown with a moderate creamy light brown head that mostly lasted with excellent lacing. Heavy toasted chocolate, licorice and coffee malt with a small alcohol aroma. Full body with a creamy texture. Heavy balanced toasted chocolate malt flavor with a heavy bittersweet finish of long duration. This is a standout beer.

Courtesy of Styles

Bottle: The aroma has lots of roasted coffee, black licorice, molasses, light caramel, vanilla, and a hint of burnt wood. It pours virtually black with a small brown head. The flavor has lots of roasted coffee and black licorice. There’s also some moderate chocolate, molasses, and caramel. It finishes with some burnt notes, piney hops, and a hint of wood and vanilla. There bourbon presence in this is extremely minimal. Very nice.

Thanks to chef201atc for fetching this nice beer from Colorado! Pours black with a big brown head that dissipates only towards the end. Aroma of licorice, espresso, very dark chocolate, mint, and alcohol. Initial flavor is delicious fudge (which I love in a stout), dark chocolate, wood, dirt, light vanilla, and a bit of booze. Finishes with more vanilla, but it’s quickly overtaken charred wood and ash. That lingering unsweetened espresso aftertaste is a bit too ashy for me. Oh so drinkable, creamy and thick, a bit hot, and the carbonation is nice and soft. Very good beer, good flavor transitions and a lot to offer. I’ve got others I like more, but I would never say no to this.

Bomber. Another very dark black pour with a big brown head. Aroma seems very sweet with a roasty coffee smell that dominates...maybe a hint of chocolate, and woody cask bourbon. Sweet roasty flavor is quite good, expanding on the aroma. Full bodied...hop bitterness more pronounced late in the taste...quite enjoyable.

Deep deep black like the abyss it is names for. Nice tan head lasts awhile. Aroma of vanilla, oak and chocolate. Very nice as it warmed. Flavor much of the same with a great texture and chewiness. Completely coats the tongue yet is not overbearing. Really nice impy stout. I love it.

I didn’t have room for notes on this one - just wrote scores. It was damn good though. I would like to get my hands on some more.

2007 version. Thanks to MaltOMeal for this beer. Poured at the 1/28 Houston tasting. Pour is dark as an abyss with a beautiful mocha head with nice lacing. Aroma is very earthy wood with a bit of cigar smoke. Taste is coffee with rich hops and molasses. Nice and creamy with a drying finish of bitter coffee and hops. Wonderful tasting, but this will only get better.

RBSG07. From 22 oz bottle. Pours dark brown with a creamy brown head. Aroma of barrels, coffee and cocoa. Flavour is dominated by barrel notes, coffee, chocolate and liqourice. Finish is a good blend of hop and coffee bitterness. 7-5-8-4-16 4

Blind tasting at sk8vikings porter / stout tasting, beer no 17. Pours black with brown creamy head. Slight roasted malty aroma. Slight alcohol note in aroma. Chocolate malty flavour, slight sweet with a bitter hops twist. Nice bitter finish with a persisting chocolate note and slight burned. 7-4-7-4-14 3.6

From bottle #32 at sk8vikings American blind tasting. Pours dark brown with a lacing tan head. Roasted malt, chocolate and coffee aroma. Flavour is smooth roasted malt and chocolate. Solid coffeeish flavour to this. Light fruity note to an otherwise solid roasted and dark brew. Lingering roasted malt flavour. Nice smooth and flavourful. Lastin fruity bitterness.8-4-9-4-17=4.2