McKenzie 5 Czars Imperial Stout

Formerly brewed at McKenzie Brew House
Style: Imperial Stout
Glen Mills, Pennsylvania USA

A pitch black beer with a brown head. The aroma is of chocolate and alcocohol, combined with a slight acidity and alcohol - a super aroma. The flavor is sweet and very roasted, but also with strong notes of vanilla, and light notes of alcohol, towards the end quite bitter coffee notes comes along, before the final is dry and alcoholic. It is a shame, that this is not made anymore. For me it was the top beer of RBSG 2006.

Name: Russian Imperial Stout
Date: 10/13/2007
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewfest, GABF

black, fine tan head, rich dark chocolate aroma with a bit of sweetness bringing out the chocolate, rich dark chocolate flavor, lots of biter roasted character,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 13/20
Rating: 3.4/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **+/4

From the Jug at the GABF, Colorado Convention Center 11/10/2007 (As McKenzie Russian Imperial Stout) Tan head. Coffee roast aroma. Black smooth on the palate and strong in alcohol with a crisp lasting coffee roast finish.

2004 Kennett Square BF. Poured a dark black color with a large brown head. Aromas and tastes of chocolate, roasted malts, and coffee. Very nice taste and aroma. Sweet with a light bitter finish. Nice.

Huge brown head sticks to the glass with class, very foamy. Black appearance. Globally complex nose boasts powerful tobacco and roasty notes paired up with a vinous side, grapey and bready in nature. Interesting dark fruit range (plums, grapes, blackberries) yet not passing over the more typical chocolate and roasty overtones. Dry chocolate flavor, feeling a bit dusty, almost rocky. Milky yeastiness, fruity and dry. Maybe not as rich as I hoped or it’s just the very strong carbonation that plays tricks on me and makes me miss some. Medium bodied, nicely not too focused on hops. In the end, somehow, like pretty much all the Mckenzies I’ve had, it’s neatly done, but not particularly remarkable. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not rooting for the bigger the better clan, but for instance, their super saison didn’t appear as marvellous and shining as the Dupont and on parallel with the new Heavyweight, I can’t give a clear winner while the Heavyweight was not even 6%. Their beers are all great rendition, displaying excellent brewing, but I wouldn’t point any of them as world-class.

GABF 2004: Very dark opaque black with a thick dark tan/light brown head. Aroma is sweet, robust and malty with a touch of oak. Very unique smokey bacon, soy and brown sugar body has good complexity and a smooth dark chocolatey finish. Definitely an interesting imperial and very well done at that.

The Lure:
Burnt toast roastiness hangs on to the spritzy, big bubbles. Dates and figs show up late, yet mingle nicely with the dark chocolate and milky soy.

The Festivities:
Light-bodied and heavily carbonated for the style. Yeastiness joins the creamy roastiness in its dominance, and evokes ashes. Some dark chocolate, but no lip-smacking decadence. Grapey fruitiness evokes again the Belgian proximity, as raisin biscuits create more depth. Rather easy-drinking for an imperial stout, which isn’t a problem if you’re in the mood for that. An aged bottle calmed down the carbonation somewhat, and made everything more creamy, classy and better united. A superb product.

Transcendence:
Liveliness can be energetic and inspiring, but can also fall into muddled and chaotic.

Bottle shared by goldtwins. Dark black beer with a thick creamy tan head. Aroma is loaded with rich black licorice and a bitter earthiness. Rich cocoa flavour with a sticky bitter chocolate flavour. Very, very roasty flavour without ever getting astringent. Chewy and slightly salty. Tobaccoish earthiness with a light cherry flavour. There’s a bit of soft chewy sweetness Light earthy/spicy hoppiness on the back. Really intense brew, but still quite approachable. Very, very tasty.