Samuel Smiths Imperial Stout

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Imperial Stout
Tadcaster, England

pitch black, large smooth light brown head. aroma of brown sugar, toffee, roasted malts, salty licorice, english licorice. flavor is brown sugar, toffee, burnt caramel, roasted malts, licorice, ends hard roasted and the roasetd flavor lasts for long. the flavor is a parade of flavors, each one topping at a different time, yielding a very intersting experience. time spent drinking this slowly is time well spent.

Rerate 1/30/03: This is the Imperial Stout that opened my eyes to the world of Imperial Stouts, but I have had better ones since. 4/29/02 (4.7): Wow, just when I thought I had tried Samuel Smith's best beer, this beer comes into my life. At $2.25 a bottle I can't think of a better choice. Wonderfully rich aroma, roasted coffee and smooth chocolate flavor. Medium thick tan head and really nice lacing. This is a new favorite, I can't wait to try it again.

Coffee, chocolate, liquorice, brown sugar and black bread aroma. Black as coal, cappuccino head. Dark caramel flavour, coffee, chocolate and treacle, as well as roasted malts. Complex and ultra smooth. Lace is incredible. Sensational!!

In short: A very fruity and barely roasted “black beer”. Excellent.
How: Bottle, 550ml from HogTownHarry, aged unknown (although I believe this is 1+ year old). I don’t know about fresh bottles but this was truly excellent. Thanks Harry.
The look: Black body with a medium tan head
In long: Very smooth roastiness with some black liquorice, apple juice, dark fruits juice (plums, prunes) and raisins. Very juicy indeed, this thing is a lot more about concentrated dark fruits than it is about roasted malts. This bottle was from HogTownHarry cellar I think it was an aged vintage, but just like with a Filipino prostitute I don’t care old it is as long as I am having such a great time with it.

355ml bottle. The pour reveals a black colour with a brownish tint. Beige, lasting head. Smell of black coffee. Dark malty flavour with a spicy undertone and hints of lemon and yeast. Warming alcohol in the end. Enjoyable (Oslo, 23.05.2006).

Yeah, it’s malty and roasty with notes of chocolate, but it just doesn’t light my ass on fire.

Bottle. Almost black with a beige, creamy head. Nice chocolate and espresso nose, but also rummy and raisins aromas. Complex flavours of roasted malts, chocolate and creamy espresso as well as dark fruit. Long dry aftertaste. Medium-bodied, good carbonation. A great imperial stout.

It’s interesting, I’ve had this many times before, but never sat down and rated it. For an imperial stout these days it’s weak, thinner on the palate, lower abv, and what not, with the big boys of today it doesn’t really stand up. But... there is something about the mineral flavor I get from Sam Smiths beers that pairs really nicely with the roastiness of their stout. Lightly smoked character, caramel, and dark chocolate. The flavors act much larger then they are, sort of tricks the brain a bit. Maybe the mineral, almost salty quality to it kinda resets the palate, making the range of sweetness appear greater? The finish unfortunately gives it away, more sugary sweetness, without the solid depth of malts that some of the bigger imp. stouts have. Overall still decent, good flavors up front, but the finish falls short.