Full Sail Black Gold Imperial Stout

Brewed by Full Sail Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Hood River, Oregon USA

16-Jun-05 (22 oz bottle: Shared with SDbruboy at O’Brien’s, thanks Cliff!) Generously provided to assist me on my quest to rate 50 consecutive Imperial Stouts, this was number 47. Poured from the bottle, it’s a very pretty beer. Dark brown color with ruddy edges is lighter than almost any Imperial Stout I’ve had, but the full inch of dark tan head shows excellent retention, holding at a quarter-inch for quite some time. Ringed and patchy lacing adorns the glass, and subsurface bubbles cling to the glass, resisting the urge to join their friends atop the beer. The nose is lightly roasty, but equally malty and hoppy. First impression of the flavor is that this is a hopped up foreign stout, sweet, light vanilla, with a moderate roastiness that is definitely not a focal point. Toward the finish, the roast is pushed aside by a bitter, fairly floral hoppiness, and it’s the hoppiness of this Imperial Stout that is the lasting impression, not the roast. The alcohol isn’t noticeable at all. Medium "plus" body is fairly clean on the palate for the style, .ut that’s not surprising given the hoppiness. Not sticky or viscous. Naming it "Black Gold" is a bit of an exaggeration, but overall, a lighter Imperial Stout than most of what is out there, but still quite enjoyable and quaffable. (7, 4, 7, 4, 14, total: 3.6)

08-Aug-05 (Draft: Full Sail Brewing Company in Hood River, OR) Just a brief update since I’m fortunate enough to sample this directly at the brewery, I’d say the deep, bitter, roastiness is actually the lasting impression, so apparently as this beer ages, the roast subsides a bit. But fresh out of the tap, this is sweet, caramely, bitter, and strongly roasty. No signs of the fruity hoppiness I picked up when sampling the bottle. So, with this sample here at the brewery, yes, I’ll agree that it IS "Black Gold."

Black with a nice thick creamy tan head. Aroma is mild with only some bitter chocolate and roast. Palate is well carbonated. Flavor is almost burnt. The roasted flavor has become burnt and almost offensive in the finish.

bomber thanks to hey_kevin. wow! this is a nice surprise. I let this bottle sit out for about 10 -15 minutes before I opened it up and it was the right thing to do. roarty malt aroma with some bittersweet chocolate, coffee and alcohol. color is a deep dark brown with a small tan head that settles down to swirls of lace chasing around on the top of the ale. mild flavors of the aforementioned choc/coffee/alcohol with other hints of dark fruit and earthy oak. hop bitterness on the end is present but is in nice balance to the mild flavors up front. the mouthfeel is a little thin yet it has a buttery smoothness to it. I’m a little surprised by the low average rating this one has received! IMO, under-rated.

22oz bottle, sampled at camp after a bomber of Stone RIS 2005. Body is initially thin, but by the end of the bottle I was digging this one. It seemed more thick that at first, which had some light, dry malts, some cream and some very light dark woody fruit flavors. These dark fruit (plum, black cherries, etc) opened up a lot when it warmed: leaving me with a thick, rich and sweet dark chocolate, raspberry seed, black cherry and oak concoction. But still this imperial stout remains just below the level of being really good. My impressions are mixed, because at first it seems like a mid or high 2, but by the end I could almost give it a 4 or above. I will definitely rerate, but wait until the entire bottle is at a good temperature before I begin. I should also take this moment to bitch a litle bit, because Full Sail has the capacity, creativity and talent to brew a top 10 imperial stout if they wanted to, but their direction is more mass marketed, outside of the Boardhead, which has a loyal following in Oregon.

Tasted on Tap at 2005 OBF. Dark black color. Small sized tan foamy head. Aroma is chocolate, coffee and a touch of vanilla. A medium bodied Russian Imperial Stout. Malts are chocolate, coffee and roasty malts. Slightly bitter hops. Nice roasty flavors. Little milder than expected for a RIS. Good drinking stout. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is bitter.

Maybe the first time Full Sail has failed to meet expectations, though they are pretty high expectations. Aroma is roasted chocolate, which didn’t compete well with the other chocolate brews at OBF. Appearance is nice and dark, with some red streaks in it, as well as a nice coppery head. Flavor is a bit too much alcohol for the palate, making it a bit harsh. Mouthfeel is very creamy.

(draft) Creamy tan head atop a body that is black with red highlights. Aroma is moderately sweet, chocolate, coffee, some roasty. Taste is rich, moderately sweet, chocolate, roasty, light cherry, with a bit of alcohol burn in the swallow. Full creamy body.

This beer lokos great, with a very dark color and copper colored head. The palate is a little thin for a big dark beer like this, but the flavor is very heavy. The flavors of this beer are very nice, except for the fortified alcohol taste. It tasted buttery and roasty at first, and then turned into fortified alcohol taste that ruined the whole beer. I wouldn’t order this again.