Pours black with a small tan head that diminishes quickly. Aroma of chocolate and coffee. Taste is chocolate, roasted malts, and some hops. Coffee flavor is weak and kind of stale - like Peche Mortel light. Mouthfeel is syrupy with low carbonation. This beer is good but not great, drinkable but a bit boring. As far as coffee stouts are conserned, this can’t touch Peche Mortel .

Bottled (thanks PilsnerPeter!). Black colour with some rubyish hints. Aroma is coffee, hops, some chocolate and tobacco. Mild licorice too. Flavour is roasted coffee, burnt wood, ashes, tobacco and some slight notes of fruity hops. Very pleasant.

<br /><i><b>2005 Vintage</b> ~ Brewed November 22, 2005</i><br /> <br /><b>11/22/2008</b>: Southern Tier Jah*Va Imperial Coffee Stout has a thick and syprupy pour. The black beer clings to the glass. It is opaque and lets absolutly no light pass through. The carbonation is pretty low at this point, but an extremely thin crown forms for a short while and then fades away to leave just a ring of bubbles around the endges. The aroma is massive as I can smell it from about 3 feet or more away&#033; It just reeks of rich, smooth, and mouth-watering dark chocolate. An examination of the aroma closer up reveals undertones of sweeter milk and semi-sweet chocolates, dark caramelized malts, coffee, creamy coffee, and sweet roasted/charred malts. The fantastic flavor is a silky smooth blend of highend coffee melded with chocolate and caramelized and roasted malts. Everything is just so well blended and balanced. Each flavor can be tasted, but none dominate and they all come together quite harmoniously. This beer has a great balance of sweet malts and slightly bitter coffee and dark chocolate. Overall it is has just the right level of sweetness. The finish is extremely creamy with hints of vanilla, roasty espresso, and bourbon barrel-like char &#40;no real bourbon flavor though and it is not missed and not needed in this awesome beer&#033;&#41;. Everything about the flavor is so rich and that 12% ABV is nowhere to be found. It is thick and heavy on the palate like milk and it also clings to every part of the mouth. The mouth feel is mellow and silky and very smooth. Damn, this is a super fine beer and THE BEST coffee beer or stout I have ever had. It is just about perfect right now and makes me really wish I had more of this vintage, although I was too cheap to buy more at the time. However, this beer is worth every penny.<br /> <br /><i>650 ml. / 1 pt. 6 fl. oz. silk-screened bottle &#40;Alc. 12% by Vol./32’ plato/125 ibu’s/247.0’ L/2-row malt/caramel malt/chocolate malt/black malt/roasted barley/cascade & columbus hops/jamaican blue mountain coffee&#41; from decaturstevo via trade in November 2006. Thank you Stevo&#033; Rating #494 for this beer.</i><br />

From the pour and aroma I wasn’t that impressed. Not as opaque as other RIS, very little head, and aroma was mostly anise. HOWEVER, once I sipped this thing, my feelings changed. Thin texture yet it just sticks to your tongue and teeth with a lingering coffee and malt bitterness that is very nice. Carbonation is very low. ABV is extremely well hidden. Overall, I’m impressed.

From my girlfriend. Pours black with a slight tan head. Aroma is coffee and dark chocolate. Flavor is also coffee and chocolate, with way too much sugar. It’s good, tasty, but the sweetness stops it from being a 4. The alcohol is dangerously well-hidden. Nice mouthfeel, and overall a nice beer.