North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

A fun pour to watch as the layers of color waterfall much like a Guinness. The rich, foamy head is reminiscent of high krausen. Has a delicious roasted malt profile; damn-near perfect. Delving your nose into the head brings to mind a coffee-bean aroma that is pure bliss to caffeine addicts like myself. A judicious presence of hops and some fruitiness round out the nose. The taste is a whole other ballgame. Goodly sweet upfront with a determined alcohol bite in back. The roasted malt flavor coats your mouth and the beer itself is slick on your tongue. Not all that complex, in my opinion, but a perfect representation of the style. What elements are present here are crisp, dandy, and put to perfect use.

Medium dark head. Nice aroma. Complex nutty, roasted and dark flavor. Very enjoyable.

12 oz bottle from Liquorama, enjoyed with NickTheElder. Aroma of coffee and alcohol. Oaky espresso taste with a sharp bitterness at the end. Great aftertaste. Pretty good but I like Stone IRS better.

12 oz bottle poured into a snifter glass. Aroma was a deep and pleasurable chocolate. The aroma carried through to the flavor. This is a complex brew that is meant to be savored. I enjoyed this beer for about an hour. It’s hard to believe a beer this good can be found for such a bargain at my local specialty beer store.

12 oz. bottle. Poured this stout into a clean shaker. Wonderful smooth aroma. Poured with a foamy head that was tight. Poured very dark, almost black. Tastes of roasted, toasted chocolate and expresso. Soft fruits underneath. Superior Stout.

From bottle. Fantastic appearance. Black colour with a frothy tan head. Lace clings to glass. Sweet berry aroma, hint of roasted malt. Bitter flavour. Strong alcohol notes warming up the beer. Coffee and chocolate hints turn it to a smooth finish yet keeps that liquor bite.

Bottle from a 4-pack. Pours a deep dark chocolate brown with a 2 finger deep khaki brown head. Chocolate, cherries, malts and alcohol dominate the nose. Palate is pretty much the same. The robustness of the the roasted malts and bitter dark chocolate give this brew a very nice bite on the palate. It’s almost dry like a well hoped ale. My only gripe if it can be called on is the domance of the alcohol. Otherwise, this is a very impressive stout.

12 oz. bottle from Total Wine. Pours black with a creamy tan head. Very nice, lasting lacing. Aroma is a combination of roasted nuts and dark chocolate. Flavor matches the aroma, roasted malt and dark chocolate. Very well balanced. A bit thin for an Imperial Stout but overall a very fine beer. Hard to beat the price and availability too.