Portsmouth Kate The Great Russian Imperial Stout

Brewed by Portsmouth Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Portsmouth, New Hampshire USA

Another bottle (2008) shared by the overly generous BOLZ7555 – thanks J! Pours pitch black with a half finger tan head that leaves spotty lacing. The nose is molasses, brown sugar, dark fruits and burnt malt. The taste is cocoa, bitter hops, caramelized brown sugar and black coffee. Full creamy mouthfeel. Reminds me of 08 Darkness. Very nice – thanks again Big J!

09 bottle, thanks Nelson. Pours dark brown/balck, with a brown head. Arioma is chocolate, malt, coffee, dark fruit, vanilla, and alcohol. Flavor is coffee, dark fruit, chocolate, molasses, alcohol, and a little smoke. Medium, creamy body. Starts sweet, ends slightly bitter. This is top notch.

A pleasant surprise presence. Sampled during Stub & Herbs March Tasting in Minneapolis, MN. Pours an opaque near black brew with a thin and creamy tan head that has nice retention and sticky lacing. Aroma of dark chocolate malt, some vanilla, red licorice, a hint of coffee and carameled pear. Taste is full bodied, thick and chewy with flavors of toasted dark malt with chocolate, dark pitted fruits, and some toffee. Finish has a semi-sweet chocolate aftertaste with some dark fruits. Not as bitter as most other Imperial Stouts but still worth looking for.

Pours with an opaque black body topped by a thin head with a good amount of lacing. It’s sweet and malty with nice chocolate and roasty notes as well as a little coffee and a touch of alcohol. Full bodied, slightly warming and well carbonated.

courtesy of fogdog. Many thanks for this amazing share. Pours deep black with beige head. Aroma, roasted malts, chocolate with some cocoa powder. Taste, is maltywith tons of chocolate and light coffee. Excellent silky mouthfeel of chocolate that hits the palate, literally melting the chocolate.. Great Imp Stout, but not the end all be all that everybody talks about.

22 ounce bottle. Pours pure black with a dab of brown head. The aroma is light with cocoa and I get a bit of vanilla or marshmallow fluff. The flavor is a bit more chocolaty, with a roasted edge. I found this to be more subtle that most of the "bash you over the head" type imperial stouts that we’ve come to love. In a night were we had the complete set of Dark Lord, this was a welcome addition.

On tap at Portsmouth Brewery 2/9,.Just an awsome beer that more than lived up to it’s hype. Pours oil black with dark brown lacing. Aroma of molasses, roast, and chocolate. Taste is incredible, alcohol is barely present. Has strong cocoa and molasses flavor that are present right through to the end and then slights into a medium bitter finish. Just a beautiful finish, equal parts sweet and bitter. What a treat!

Spent a good amount of time waiting in the cold to try this beer and It was well worth it. Poured dark, dark brown from the tap with a brownish-red 1 finger head. Couldn’t detect much in the aroma. Just some light chocolate and maybe some vanilla. The flavors of this stout are wonderful. Sweeter than most RIS’s. Sweet dark fruits, coffee, chocolate, vanilla, caramel, and a hint of smoke. Medium bodied. I could see how this could be to sweet for some stout lovers. But this is right up my alley. A wonderful beer on a wonderful day off from work.