Free State Owd Macs Imperial Stout

Auction. Dark brown pour with thin tan head. Sweet malt aroma with hints of roast. Nice smooth blend of chocolate and coffee. Very well balanced. I really enjoyed it Thanks Joker!

Great Taste 2009. Note the finest imperial stout of the day, but I could see why people like it. Notes of semi-sweet chocolate, raisin, dark cherry. Fairly creamy, with vanilla and oak undertones, which are more pronounced on the finish. I didn’t find it as complex as several other of the Imperial Stouts that day, but this was very good.

Sampled at GTMW 2009 (2005 vintage). Pours black with virtually no head. Aroma of mostly dark fruits with a hint of chocolate. Full, rich flavor with some detection of dark roasted malt but a more dominant raisiny flavor. Moderate alcohol burn. My notes say "TASTY" in bold letters. I can’t argue with that. I would like to compare a younger vintage with the 4 year old one but this is a must try for any Imperial Stout fan.

2005 vintage on tap at GTMW Jet black pour, no head or carb left likely do to the age of the beer. Full creamy well coated palate. Great rich flavor sweet syrups roasty malts a light alcoholic swallow with some vanilla in the aftertaste. A bit of dry wood lingers on the tongue later. Very well blended & mellowed and quite sweet.

[’05 On-tap at GTMW ’09] Pours black with almost no head. Aroma has alcohol, whiskey notes, blackberry and chocolate. Taste is alcohol, dark fruits, vanilla, cookie dough, and lots of raisin. Medium mouthfeel, smooth, and has a long finish. This was a nice beer, and I enjoyed it, but I had hoped for just a little bit more. Still, I would love to try this on-tap in Lawrence some time.

Sampled at GTMW 2009 (Madison, WI). Pours a very black pour, brown around the edges, with little to no head. Aromas throw some light bourbon and vanilla, roasted malts, chocolate, coffee with light dark fruit. A pretty great aroma leads into a thick pour of dark roasted malts, coffee, and chocolate. Creamy, chocolate, warming bourbon boozy presence. Slight dark fruit, quite roasty bitter on the finish. Very nice and a beer I’m happy to have finally tried.

12 oz. handbottle from mreusch (2005 vintage). Pours black in color with a small beige head. The aroma dark chocolate, molasses, dark fruits, oak, and a bit boozy. This one tastes much bigger than the listed abv. Big roasted malt, dark chocolate, dark fruits (figs, prunes), still hoppy after all this time, molasses, vanilla, and alcohol. Medium-full bodied and a definite sipper. I have been wanting to try this since I joined ratebeer and it was worth the wait. Thanks Matt for providing my 1000th rating. Rating # 160 for this beer.

In short: An superior imperial stout with a bit of everything the genre can offer.
How: 12oz hand-bottle from mreusch (seems to be the official supplier of Free State Owd Mac’s
The look: Black body topped by a very small beige head
In long: Nose is medium roasted with a strong sweetness sensation and some green fresh hops in the back. Blind tasting from the nose I would probably have called it a barley wine. Taste is not as sweet as the nose. A rather complex stouts that has a bit of everything. Chocolate cake, earthy, molasses, roasted wood, green grassy hops, some dark fruits. The hand-bottle was unfortunately under-carbonated and the body a little lifeless. But the flavours were all there so it is easy to imagine the real thing. One of the very few impy stouts that somewhat reminds me of the Expedition Stout. Crap that was good. Crap, I wish I could go to Kansas and drink this fresh at the pub, but I don’t have firearm licence.