McNeills Imperial Stout

Formerly brewed at McNeills Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Brattleboro, Vermont USA

As soon as I opened the bottle I got a whiff of alcohol. But it gets better. Looks absolutely beautiful: Pours out super-thick; opaque black, dark head with a few big bubbles that eventually dissipates. Initially smelled hoppy, but after letting sit for a minute it smells a bit sweeter.

Then I taste it and BOOM. The flavor is mouth-filling and huge and just doesn't quit. Chocolate, coffee; tons of hops at the finish. A little warm going down (7.8% I've read), but the alcohol is barely detectable. Oh, did I mention there is a huge hops flavor? Ths hops really dominate this beer, but they aren't unbearably bitter. This stuff is big and chewy and roasty. I'm new to this beer-rating business, but this is probably the most flavorful beer I've tried.

Solid hop aroma and bitter flavor to start. Almost overrides the malt which finally breaks through with a roasted flavor and hangs on through the moderately dry finish. A flavor of oxidized hops breaks through in the aftertaste. Overall a good brew. Definitely one that needs aging after bottling. Lots of aging.

Re-rate (3/27/05 - 8-4-8-4-16=4.0): Roasted malts battle with orange/pine hops in the big, thick chocolate aroma. Opaque solid dark and black with a brown head that recedes to ring and partial cover. Orange, pine-like hops complement the roasty and chocolate flavours. Plenty of lasting residual sweetness on the tongue. Medium-full body feels somehow dry with low carbonation. On tap at the brewpub with MartinT, muzzlehatch and Rastacouere.
Original rating (3/21/04 - 6-3-6-3-9=2.7): Dry hopped? Never expected that much hop aroma from an impy. Or maybe it’s just a dark IPA? Resin, pine, some citrus - all hops in the nose. If I had been smelling this beer blind-folded I would have thought it was an IPA. Dark brown, opaque with very dark brown head that recedes to cover. Marginal lacing. Big hop flavour - like chewing on a pine cone without the fibre content. Tart and bitter. Pine overwhelms. Thick, chewy mouthfeel but sticky. Very complex, but not entirely enjoyable. Just too hoppy. A shy roastiness appears in the finish. Bottle. Blind tasting #10.

Kind of a rubbing alcohol aroma at first that eases off a little after sitting to let the roasted chocolate malts take over the nose. This thing is darker than dark with a dark head to match. A good bit of yeast sediments on the bottom. Awesome chocolate covered expresso bean taste at first with a great hop kick. Still has that rubbing alcohol taste/smell. Upon letting my stout sit for a few minutes I found the alcohol taste dies off leaving an extraordiary taste behind. Definately try this if you get the chance.

Acquired via trade. Pours like a claggy can of motor oil with a thin beige head. Rather thin lacing that trails down the entire glass. The aroma is a bold mix of coffee, roasted malt, caramel, and chocolate. Very rich bodied and smoothly balanced with flavors of espresso, malt, chocolate and a touch of hops. Alcohol is difficult to detect but it is definitely there. The finish is on the dry side with bitter coffee and hops. Overall this is a very good Imperial Stout and I would like to find out what else this brewery has to offer someday.

Some hop aroma with roasted malt mixed in. Poured with a brown head that had good lacing to the glass. Black opaque color. Some hop flavor and bitterness with roasted malt following more hop flavor than I want from an Imperial Stout (minor amount it should age well and the hop will mellow more with time). A good Imperial that I will drink again.

What could you give the apperance other than a 5. Pours black as night with a nice dark tan head and a lot of yeast at the bottom. Initial aroma of rubbing alcohl and dark chocolate improves as it warms, letting out notes of roasted malt , coffee, and a beautiful medely of other dark scents. Complex roasted malt/coffee flavor, balanced by an excellent hop presence, yet the bitterness tends to come from a bakers chocolate flavor. The body also seemed to pick up as this beer warmed. I was blown away by this brew and am in dyer need of more. Thanks muzzlehatch for the excellent brew and the hospitality in Vermont.

On tap at Mcneills, this is quite a different animan rich piney hops when it warms are dominated by a complex dark bread and coffee blend. Fruity (dates, grapes) and slightly smokey, this one has it all. Its mouthfeel is smooth and creamy, the bitterness is really strong , feeling quite green and fresh. Bold and luscious example on tap, more one-sided, aggressive and less complex in the bottle
Bottle: score: 3.7. This powerful imperial stout pours pitch black with a brown head (considerably darker than average) fully diminishing, but very sticky. Aroma is wow.. Pungent, very bold cappucino, very hoppy and intense. Dark chocolate and grapes meets healthy plants, surprising notes of marijuana, needless to say the nose is particularly complex. In mouth, it’s mostly about big chewy hops, agressive, but well-done, very full-flavoured indeed with suggestions of salt, blackberries (terrible anyone?, molasses, caramel and grass. Lingering green hops bitterness just lasts forever and will accompany your oldest cheddars to wonderland. Body is medium, solid. A very big beers folks and one that didn’t seem overwhelming for little me. Surprisingly not in top 50, since this is exactly the type of beer I expect to be in ratebeer’s very top.