Samuel Smiths Imperial Stout

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Imperial Stout
Tadcaster, England

Around 15 years ago, this was probably the first Imperial Stout I had ever tried. This bottle wasn’t as good as I remember, but it always seems a hit or miss proposition with Sam Smith beers. Smoky, roasted malt aroma and flavor with a bit of bitter dark chocolate. Enjoyable, but not what I remember.

Beer pours a very dark, nearly opaque dark brown-black color with a large, light brown, creamy/frothy quickly diminishing, mostly lasting head. The aroma is sticky thick and sweet: malty with heavy notes of roasted grain, cookie and caramel and cloying, heavy notes of molasses (probably the strongest I’ve smelled in a beer yet), light note of coffee; hoppy with a trace of herb; yeasty with a trace of cellar; miscellaneous notes include heavy date/prune, moderate sherry/oxidation/cardboard, light alcohol, and something light, fruity and starchy—kind of like underripe banana, that activates a knee-jerk yuck-reaction in me. The flavor is heavily sweet, lightly bitter, moderately acidic/tart with an average-length, lightly bittersweet, lightly acidic finish. The body is medium, the texture is watery and the carbonation is lively.

Boy oh boy,I had this a couple of times and still can’t seem to understand all the hype.It isn’t anywhere near the Impy that Expedition and many others are and yet is rated very high.Very thin brew and does have some complexity but...sorry.I was expecting more roasted flavors,chocolate and maybe some molasses but it was more like a robust porter to me

Bottle. Pours black brown, tan head. Aroma is molasses, caramel, anise, chocolate, port (oak). Flavor is the same and oily with coffee, pine, and roasted nuts.

This was quite interesting... The flavor and the smell were both sort of skunked. However, what I could pull from the aroma and the flavor was excellent. The roasted chocolate marshmellowy nutty aroma matched the thicker texture and chocolatey flavors. Walnut and cremy malt flavors were also coming through for me. This is probably most excellent if drawn from the tap and nmot poured from a god-only-knows-how-old-clear bottle.

Pours a dark mocha with a head the same color. Notes of roasted coffee and malts on the nose. Sweet taste of coffee, chocolate, and raisens (or black plums). It lingers with you a while so you don’t need another sip immediately, but I think I will anyway. Great stout.

had one of these for new years warming up and it was a good way to go. absolute velvet in the mouth. a rich, fruity, porty chocolate smell. big fat malty base with choc, rum, plums, overripe red grapes, and a slight sourness. not very roasty or hoppy, or intense in any particular direction, but as long as you’re not expecting stone RIS this is lovely.

Thick khaki/pink head, oil black color and a chocolate yet whiskey like aroma. It has some roasted malt flavor, plumish raisin, caffeine and a rum spike. Not all that great in my opinion.