Schooners Vindication

Brewed by Schooners Grille & Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Antioch, California USA

RBSG ’08: Keg provided by Mike. Poured a very dark brown to black color with a thin beige head. Nice roasted aroma with a lightly tart fruit to it. Cherries are my guess. The flavor was roasty with some chocolate notes wrapping over more of the fruit. Medium bodied. Good stuff.

From one of our few busrides - out of a keg. Pours brown with a lacing white head. Cherry fruity aroma and dense malty aroma. Smooth mouthfeel and flavour. Holds a nice chocolate base flavour with a lot of milky and fruity accents on top. Mild liqourice note too.

Muddy dark brown colored body with a tan/light brown head. Weird funky chocolate and bretty milk nose. Medium to low acidity, some smooth milk and cream, some roast, chocolate, coffee, etc., strange throughout, but better than many of the other sour stouts I’ve tried. Turns somewhat bland and pallid in the finish.

(BCTC, 12oz handbottle, thanks frumptydumpty) Muddy brown-black body with smooth brown head. Aroma is moderately sweet, sour raspberry, cocoa, some alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet, cocoa, sour raspberry/cherry, alcohol. Medium-full body.

RBSG ’08. Keg brought to the Grand Tasting at Pizza Port Carlsbad. Black center with clear brown edges. Smoky aroma with a pronounced sourness. My first impression: is this really a stout? Roasted malt and more smoke in the flavor, with a good play of personality between sweet coffee and tart grape. Dry, smoky finish. Interesting.

Not sure who brought the keg of this to the RBSG 08 Grand Tasting but thanks. Pours a dark opaque brown with a large-bubbled head. Aroma is chocolate malt and red fruit with a very wine-like acidity. Flavor is sharp and winey with a cocoa/roasty finish. Interesting beer for sure, but I’m not so convinced that a winey stout should exist.

~RBSG ’08~

Poured from a keg at the Grand Tasting. Dark brown pour, wet white head, turbulent lacing. Nose has lots of vinegar, some interesting elements of strong liquor, tart funkiness. Flavor has some chocolate notes, mostly vinegar and sour fruit, feels over-ripe. Creamy mouthfeel, easy to drink, but doesn’t feel like what they were trying to go for.

From Draught. Official RBSG "roadie" beer. Dark brown, borderline blackish colored pour, tinged a ruddy brown, topped with a thick layer of creamy tan head. Huge black cherry nose, complimented by some mild underlying balsamic notes. A lightly acidic, pinot grigio vinous character creates a light, crisp freshness in the nose. Pleasant chocolate malt notes come through, but the cherries and acid dominate the nose. Medium light bodied, softly carbonated mouthfeel with a creamy texture and moderate acidity. Lots of cherry flavors, skins and flesh, highlighted by a hint of roast and chocolate. Cherry cordial. The vinous notes don’t seem to come through as much on the palate, but they aren’t really missed - the dark cherry flavors are awesome. My favorite part about this beer is that it’s really more of a chocolatey Flemish Sour than a soured stout. The acid complexities dominate the flavors, while the roast malt lies subtly in the background. At the same time, the creaminess of the palate creates a beautiful balance with the sharpness of the acidity. Thanks to Mike for donating such a special treat!