HopTown Old Yeltsin Imperial Stout

Formerly brewed at HopTown Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Pleasanton, California USA

Thanks to rater snoot for this beer!

This was the forth and final ratable beer of the night for Joey and Matt’s first annual Porter / Stout till you drop… I was whacked at this point!
Pours a coal black body and a mammoth tan head. The aroma is hugely hoppy and a bit oxidized… actually adding a nice lactic infection character, which I quite liked! Bakers chocolate beside piney hops… hint of buttermilk, vanilla bean, black Columbian coffee…. bitter and intense chard malt. The palate was thick and chewy, finish dry…. Pretty good but I was looking to be WOWED! -Buzzed I was!

Hooo boy. Thanks to MattA for this bottle, though this late into the sampling he was looking at me like I might never leave. Was a deep black color poured into the belgian looking glass provided by matt. Next time I’ll bring my own Imperial pint so it looks empty and he feels beholden to pour more in. Almond extract and vanilla in the aroma with ample raosted malt and mild chocolate. Licorice and chocolate flavors. Burnt tasting toward the end with ample bitterness. Very big and satisfying brew.

On tap poured an opaque black with a brown head. Aromas of coffee, dark chocolate, licorice and roasted malt. Palate was smooth and creamy. Flavors of roasted malt, cocoa, coffee, and licorice with a dry, bitter, warming finish.

Pours deep black with a brown head. Roasty, dried fruit nose with an oaky vanilla nose. The flavor is choclatey with some burnt malts and sweetness. The finish is malty and full. This is a straightforward RIS with lots of punch and flavor but little finesse.

Roasty aroma has notes of chocolate, soy and salt. Opaque black body with slight ring of tan head. Chocolate, soy, alcohol, light citrus flavours. Medium body seems sweet and syrupy yet dry. Bottle sampled with MartinT, Olivier_MTL, Rastacouere.

Bouteille datant d’environ 2 ans d’age. Couleur brune foncée, apparence opaque, mousse brune pale pleinement diminuante. Arômes très herbales, de houblon, de sauce soya et de vieux cuir. Flaveurs sucrées, quelque peu fruités, de chocolat et de timide malt grillé. Semble ne pas avoir bien vieilli, surtout à en juger par la finale aux tons de plastique qui ne semble pas tout à fait propre. Corps d’épaisseur semi mince, carbonatation toujours présente. Ordinaire!

Pours pitch black in color. Strong sweet roasty aroma. Lots of roasted malts. Some hops and a hint of alcohol. Flavor up front is slightly subdued. Some malts and a slight bit of roastiness. Finish leaves a lasting roasted coffee aftertaste. Alcohol is not too noticable. Seems kind of one dimensional. still it is pretty tasty, just not a top impy.

Opaque, deepest brown, thin light brown head. Oldish nose, leathery somehow, heavy on the hops despite its advanced age (2yr+). Annoying soy notes, oily.. It doesn’t improve much in mouth. The fruity hops pair nicely with the chocolate, but glue-like off undertones bother the general appreciation and keep coming back and forth to rubber and root, plasticy flavours. I fear this is just not one to keep more than a year, but what’s the purpose of an imperial who can’t tough through time a bit. Light to medium bodied, moderately roasty, small bubbles prickle the tongue sides. Average.