Stone 12th Anniversary Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

Bomber. Poured nicely-viscous deep brown with a rich tan head. The aroma picked up a hefty dose of baker’s chocolate with flaked oat and lactic sweetness around.. vanilla and coffee grounds as you stick your nose farther in.. earthy and spicy on the very back. The flavor found a blend of baker’s chocolate and sweeter, milkier chocolate at the core with intermittent cofee character.. moderate-to-high roast to it.. vanilla, char, and ashy smoke rode out the edges.. finished with chocolate bitterness and alcohol warmth. Heavier-bodied and a little bit slick on the palate with rising bitterness and warmth as it made its way through the mouth.. lasting, tasty impression on the finish. Solid, but not spectacular.

Poured a nice black creamy color.Notes of chocolate, vanilla and malts.Flavor was creamy and chocolatey with some nice roastiness.Finished off bitter sweet.

Bomber: had this in old ratings. Nice complex taste with chocolate and malt. Creamy texture and low carbination. Alcohol was not that noticble to me.

First tried on tap at the GABF 2008, the second I had it I knew I had to drink it again. Pours deep black with very nice tan head. Nose is very sweet and chocolaty for an imperial, almost smells like a sweet stout. Very balanced mouth feel with dark chocolate, malt, and sugars. Finish is smooth and malty, no alcohol whatsoever...I wish I could have purchased more than 3 bottles

this beer is stupid good. there’s no way around it. blacker than life before Jesus, with a cleveland browns ballcap to boot on a head. this thing smells like whoa. then it tastes like whoa. and then, when you go in again, more whoa. huge chocolate aroma and flavors. very dark, nearly burnt chocolate. my first impression was charred liquid fudge, but in a good way. the alcohol burn hit the back of the throat fairly hard in the first few sips, mellowed in the middle, then rears its hothead in any serious pause. yes, the alcohol bites here. but that’s okay. coffee and bleeding heart juice round out the edges making this as much of an afternoon treat as a midnight sleeping pill. i like it. my buddy here, in the flannel shirt, he likes it. we agree that, at times, the flavor is almost overpowering. while punching where it should punch and smoothing where it should smooth, sometimes it throws in a kick and belts me just below the tongue-belt. whoa. and wow. i said to my buddy josh here, just now and meaning it, "this is one of the more intense drinking experiences i’ve had." and it was. and it is. for about two more sips.

Dark brown, near black in colour, lingering good sized beige head, good lacing. The aroma is roasty, good chocolate sweetness, lots of burnt coffee and some smoke. The flavour is smooth and very rich, some coffee, lots of dark chocolate, light alcohol, light bitterness. Moderately bitter mouthfeel, medium/large body, medium carbonation. Finishes long with lots of bitter dark chocolate and a bit of alcohol heat.

Not bad but the alcohol seems too much at times. Big and rich but lacking some oomph.

650ml bottle obtained in a trade with TheCheeseMan, thanks Dan.
Opened on October 2, 2008.
Bottled in July 2008.

a very nice brew. pours out a black color with a nice beige head. aroma is full of hops, dark choco, roasted malt, and a touch of sweetness. Flavor was big on dark choco and roasted malt. The finish had a nice bitterness to it. a fantastic brew.

I love good stouts, porters, etc., and this one didn’t let me down. I get a bottle almost whenever I see it. Pours thick and pitch black with a small milk-chocolate colored head. Roasty aroma with a hint of chocolate and slight hoppiness. Excellent taste. I’m thinking coffee/espresso with some dark chocolate sauce thrown in. Excellent, silky smooth. No problems putting this one down at all. It’s be an easy session beer if the alcohol was halved (but who wants that). I agree with those who say the %9.2 alcohol content is well hidden.