Redhook Double Black Stout

Brewed by Redhook Brewery
Style: Stout
Woodinville, Washington USA

When poured hard there is a big dark head. Beer is black with red jets. Aroma is mainly chocolate milk with touches of coffee and metal. The flavor is lighter than hoped with dashes of chocolate, metal, and a touch of coffee. Exhale is stronger coffee, but still not much. Honestly could be better! Warming brings signs of smoke and tar with a touch of salt, much like soy.

Pours dark brown with a thin light brown head. Smells of roasted malt, peppery, some fruity hints. Tastes of roasted malt, coffee, some licorice, some soy sauce. Average.

22 oz bottle
This was a decent beer though not deserving of the style description "imperial stout" on the label. This is a solid stout but needs something more to set it apart. Better than most other beers it is a average stout. I won’t be rushing out to get more of this any time soon.

Aroma / Appearance - The blackish body is fluid and somewhat lifeless. A crown of yellowish brown foam settled atop it without adding much visual appeal. Cherry licorice, black coffee, and chocolate shavings meld seamlessly but not without still feeling a bit bland.

Flavor / Palate - The coffee is the strongest aspect of this beer. Taking over from the start it dominates the caramel and smoke. Light on the palate with obvious carbonation I would rather have something with a bit less coffee in it. Even the finish is strong after a few minutes on the throat.

22 oz. bottle. Batch 08-0410. Pours a thin mocha head of short duration, over a dark black (SRM 40) body....nose is heavy coffee, chocolate, toffee....taste is initially bitter coffee, then sweet toffee and caramel, finishing with coffee/hop bitterness....mouth feel is medium, carbonation makes for a creamy, almost oatmeal, finish. I really, really, prefer coffee flavors to be from the roasted malts only, and so I have a bias against coffee as an additive, That said, this is a pleasant, medium grade stout, not overly complex, but it is drinkable, the way many experiments in beer are not.

Bomber pours black with a nice tan head. Aroma of sweet malt and coffee with some hoppiness showing up as well. Flavor is big roasty malt/coffee with a bit of sweetness trying to shine through, bitter finish.

22 oz. bottle from Sam’s, Apr’ 09. I note the label says "flavored ale" and "stout with coffee," unlike the first version which said "brewed with Starbucks Coffee." So it’s not exactly the same as before. Pours black as any stout would. Kicks up a big foamy brown head in my shaker glass. I caught a whiff of piney American hops when I cracked the cap. Still there in the glass, but overwhelmed by a sweet espresso smell. Taste heads this in the other direction, though. I start out with a strong coffee taste, but the the malts are way over-roasted. Or is the coffee burnt? Either way, it’s a big distraction from a beer that started out with some promise. But it is sticky sweet with malt sugars, and there is a bit of light-headedness after just half the bottle. So this is worth trying, though I’ve had coffee beers that went much, much smoother.

Good lookin’ black beer. Espresso nose. Nice even bitterness, dry beer. Surprisingly thin. Pretty quaffable but could use a bit more body.

22 oz bottle. Nose is cocoa, coffee, dark fruit. Roast malt and wood. Light head dissipates to light lace and strong ring. Glass is clean, however, after half drunk. The beer, not me. Taste is super sweet to harsh bitter. Brown sugar and dark fruit flavors are punched in the neck by dark chocolate/dry cocoa and coffee. Not very thick in the mouth, however. Better than a bunch of stouts, but not as good as a bunch too.