Great Lakes Blackout Stout

Brewed by Great Lakes Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Cleveland, Ohio USA

As the name would imply, this one pours black. A two-finger head of espresso colored foam forms, but dissipates quickly. The lacing is foamy and slick, so it doesn’t hang around long. Deep, dark, roasted malts. Mild hints of bittersweet chocolate and coffee beans. Very subtle notes of oak and vanilla, not unlike bourbon. A light presence of dark fruits. Slight touch of a smoke and a hint of brown sugar. Super dark roasted maltiness. Super bold, dark roasted coffee beans. Decent notes of bittersweet chocolate. Mild hints of vanilla and dark fruits. Dark cherries, with figs and dried plums. Very tasty. Definitely has that oily quality, which I love. Sadly, it’s not quite full bodied enough, IMO. Upper-end of medium bodied, which is still enjoyable, just not close enough to perfect. Here’s another great R.I.S. with high drinkability. Super smooth and easy to drink. The 9.0%ABV is all but unnoticed. A slight warming effect is the only thing here to hint at the alcohol contained within. I wish I could get this one, here in Oklahoma.

’08 Bottle. Smells of roasted malt, coffee and chocolate. BIG flavor going on here. Tons of roasted malt, chocolate, expresso and caramel. Smooth as silk mouthfeel. Finishes with a creamy long sweet bitter chocolate. Excellent stout.

Bottled on 8/9/09. Pours thick black with one finger tan head, good lacing. Nutty aroma with bitter chocolate and coffee, molasses undertones. Full bodied, creamy mouthfeel. Rich thick chocolate milkshake flavor, then a very mild bitter balanced mocha finish.

bottle thanks to daknole. black pours with medium amount of thick brown foam that leaves nice lacing. aroma is of tons and tons to roasted malts, some char and smoke notes here and there, lots of sweet bready yeast complimenting it nicely. taste is of again tons of malt, roast, thick oils mouthfeel and aftertaste. sweet and bitter hop notes start te emerge in the back of the taste. smooth sipper, nice and heavy and thick.

Pours very dark, close to black, with a small tan head. The aroma has very roasted and creamy malt, dark chocolate, licorice and molasses - very bold. Medium smooth body with minor carbonation. The initial taste has the aroma traits with lots of bitterness from the roasted malt and there is a dark fruitiness as well. The finish has some earthy and woody hops, lactic traits and some spice. This is a very good impy stout.

Black with a small beige head. Very balanced and inviting chocolate aroma with notes of coffe and other typical IS components. Mouthfeel is extremely slick, a bit creamy and somewhat thin for the style (which I like.) Flavour is a bit of a letdown compared to the aroma with a almost watery character to it and a rather unsatisfying finish. Still the flavours in there are lovely and I wouldnt hesitate to drink this again.

bottle. pours very dark and thick, almost black. aroma is that of malt and dark chocolate. at first taste is very bitter but finishes with a a warm, chocolatey flavor. it almost burns your throat.

12 oz bottle, shared with my bro, 2006 bottling - poured very, very dark brown, near black, with some faint reddish highlights at the bottom of the glass. Small cinnamon head. Tantalizing aromas of milk chocolate and hazelnuts, some espresso, layered beautifully. Flavour is almost milky, but without a lactic sourness - I suspect three years of aging has done wonders for this brew. Layers upon layers of chocolate, roast, alcohol. Wonderfully smooth mouthfeel - velvety almost. Alcohol creeps up, but isn’t hot, likely settled down and integrated as a result of the aging. A superb beer.