North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

Brewed by North Coast Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Fort Bragg, California USA

Bottle. Pours thick and dark brown with a large foamy brown head that takes a long time to recede. Roasted chocolate malt aroma with sweet figs and dates and some slight alcohol. Initially bitter, it moves to a sweet warming middle before a bitter/tangy hop finish with espresso and cocoa. Smooth and creamy.

12 fl oz brown bottle. Deep brown/black colour, opaque. Holds a nice tan cap throughout the glass. Sweet malt aromas combine with coffee and chocolate. Inital taste is sweet chcoolate malts, a decent level of citrusy hop flavours. Finishes with a trace of alcohol, lots of roast and some citrusy bitterness. Low carbonation, creamy full mouthfeel. Great drinkable and balanced impy.

Overall wasn’t impressed. Very long-lasting, creamy head that was quite tasty, and it was strong without an alcohol taste, yet it just lacked an over-the-top roasted/hoppy flavor characteristic of imperial russian stouts. Seemed more like a strong british dry stout than an IRS. Very little aroma, no development on the palate, bland flavor, not terribly impressed.

I guess holding onto any beer geek credentials requires declaring unconditional love for yet another impy stout, right? Truth is, this is a good beer and I can appreciate it — even if the style’s not my thing. It poured opaque and nearly black into my glass, like viscous oil. Aroma mostly of roasted malt, dark chocolate, espresso and licorice. Flavours of dark fruits (prunes, plums) burnt sugar and coffee. Bitter hops contributed to a long, dry finish with a nice alcohol burn going down. Smooth and full-bodied with low carbonation that contributed to the rich feel.

Had this in a pint glass. Poured very dark, nearly black, with a half inch head. Nice hoppy aroma. Also hints of coffee and chocolate. Very nice flavor. Rich, but not overpowering. Not too sweet. Coffee and chocolate tastes, balanced by a pleasant bitterness which cleansed the palate after swallowing. Although a high alcohol content, it didn’t overpower the beer. Smooth, clean finish. Didn’t linger in the mouth. An excellent beer, although it would be hard to drink a lot of these in a row.

This beer pours as dark as night, even the head is tinted brown. Cold an aroma of chocolate, coffee and licorice hit you over the head hard. As it warms and sits for a bit the aromas, as well as the flavors really start to pan out. This is a really hardy drinker. I had a very bitter taste on my tongue for parts of this. It was a great beer but not the best stout I have had.

Pretty amazing beer! Tons of nice flavours such as, hardly roasted malts, caramell, cascade (or similar citrusy-hop flavour), toffee, and some honey too! I am lucky to have three more of this in my cellar. :)

bottled, poured deep/thick black with small dark brown head, nice roasted aroma, a variety of flavors on the tongue with roasted malt, coffee, chocolate, alcohol, and others i can’t describe, wonderful heavy mouth feel with nice hop finish...very good brew