RateBeer
Sign Up or Login : Advanced Search

Left Hand Oak Aged Imperial Stout

Percentile
98
overall

bottled
common

on tap
common

Broad Distribution
Find this beer

Add Distribution Data
send corrections | shelftag |
RatingsAverageScoreSeasonalABVStyle PctlServe in
4813.9/5.03.88/5.0Special10.4%78.2Snifter
Commercial Description:
2008 and prior years: This 10th Anniversary celebration Imperial Stout hibernated in our cellars in French oak wine barrels since deep in the winter 2002-03. An ambitious blend of rich, dark malts and a wild variety of aromatic and bittering hops yield a beer that is large in character. Available in cork-finished, bottle-conditioned 750ml bottles.

2009 release: Thanks for purchasing another offering in our Big Mo’ Series. Russian Imperial Stouts gained popularity as a British export style from the late 1700’s through WWI. It catered to the Russians’lavish and opulent tastes and was well suited to the rigors of shipping across the Baltic Sea. Hibernating in brandy barrels for nine months before being blended to woody perfection, it is then bottle conditioned for an authentic old world experience. Imperial Stout is the perfect warmer for chilly winter nights. Enjoy the complex flavors that develop during the cask aging, including raisin, cherry, licorice, and toffee. It finishes with earthy, herbal hop notes. If discontent is the fuel of revolution then this brew is sure to keep any Bolsheviks sitting quietly by the fire. 75% Malt Beverage & 25% Malt Beverage Aged in Oak Brandy Barrels
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 tytoanderso (1387), St. Louis Park, Minnesota, USA
3.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/103/514/20
Jan 15, 2008  
750 ml bottle at the MN RB Winter Gathering from LasStudent09. This one was a definite disappointment. Subdued aroma of wood, malt and alcohol. Pours nearly still looking dark brown. Flavor was rather tart. Charred wood tannin, chocolate and sticky malt. Fairly thick, sticky and chewy on the tongue.


 MaltOMeal (652), Land of Sugar, Texas, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/57/104/516/20
Jan 14, 2008  
750 ml bottle sampled at the 2nd Houston Beer Tasting. Pours a dark brown with a thin off-white head which lingered. Aroma is of oak and roasty malt. Taste is coffee with roastiness and some oak in it. Mouthfeel was medium and creamy with alcohol picked up. This was a different Impy stout than what I’m used to. Not as strong in the chocolate or coffee flavors as would be expected.


 jrob21 (1268), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/57/103/516/20
Jan 13, 2008  
French oak wine barrels totally makes sense once you taste this beer. The oak comes through in a very faint, woody kind of flavor. Smoke and roasted malt aromas are nice. The flavor is slightly sweet, slightly chocolatey, and slightly malty. There are faint vanilla and wood flavors as well. This was good in its subtlety and made more enjoyable by the fact that it was not a sugary/alcohol bomb. Thanks to beerandblues for sending this one. I missed this the first time it was around Atlanta.


 Stine (1380), St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
2.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/55/103/510/20
Jan 12, 2008  
Poured from a 750 ml bottle. Pours thinly with a sienna brown hue. Sweet red wine, honey and chocolate aroma; faint meat and wood. Reserved; tepid. Crunchy brown sugar and toffee sweetness in the flavor, lacking depth, firmness, and strength. Cardboard, sweet white wine in lactic oak and mild citrus tones replace the almost total absence of chewy chocolate or dark malt. Confusing. Medium bodied palate; loose and slippery, finishing on burnt caramel and a kiss of alcohol. Easy to drink; emasculated, and severely overrated. Thanks for sharing, Kyle!


 hellomynameis (794), Mayer, Minnesota, USA
2.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
4/104/57/103/511/20
Jan 12, 2008  
Dark brown with a small off white head. The aroma is more or less non existent. The flavour is pretty nice, some smoke and dark malts. Bit of sweet, nothing too exiting but kind of good.


 BDR (2161), Roseville, Minnesota, USA
4.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/105/518/20
Jan 12, 2008  
Thanks to lawstudent09 or whatever... Kyle. Solid oak nose with burnt malt sweetness. Creamy body with massive sweet burnt malt and faint oak funk.


 BeerBelcher (943), Columbus, Ohio, USA
2.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
5/104/55/104/511/20
Jan 10, 2008  
For an imperial stout, a style full of great beers, I thought this beer was a bit of a disappointment. This beer poured an opaque black with a finely formed head. Aroma was chocolate-y, but tasted very stale, by which I don’t mean stale beer (oxidized), but I mean the chocolate seemed stale. Flavor was chocolate-y, but the dominating taste was day old coffee. Mouthfeel was full & good. I can’t say I’d really recommend this beer.


 lb4lb (2011), Austin, Texas, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/104/515/20
Jan 10, 2008  
Sampled at an Imperial Stout tasting
Poured black with light tan head. Smell was roasty malt, and a doughy, gooey nose. Very light oaked character noticeable to me. Light bodied somewhat, but this is perhaps an aged bottle that has mellowed it. Goes down very easy, and lighter than most Imperial Stouts, I thought. Nice beer.



CONSIDER FREE RATEBEER MEMBERSHIP



Join us! RateBeer is made by beer enthusiasts for the craft beer community. Your basic membership is free and allows you to read all beer ratings. Click here to create your account... and give your opinion!

SIGN UP NOW »

View Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49


About RateBeer | Add A Beer | Log In | Edit Personal Info | 100 Beer Club | FAQ | Feedback?
Copyright © 2000-2009, RateBeer LLC