Stone 12th Anniversary Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

Formerly brewed at Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial Stout
Escondido, California USA

20080728 Bomber thanks to dickinsonbeer. Black with brown, lasting head. Aroma of vinyl pool toys, roasty coffee. Dry and harshly astringent stuff. Nothing about it says oatmeal stout, but quite a bit screams Stone. harsh, but drinkable and would probably give it another shot.

Aroma:chocolate and coffe aroma,light smoke... Appearance:dark good brown head... Flavor:light chocolate,light smoked and light coffe..Light for 9.2%

Bottle. Black with a small head and left no lacing. Full bodied with chocolate and a gentle bitterness which took time to develop. Impressive as you would expect from this brewery.

Bomber. Nose is all about dark chocolate, roast and a little black malt murking through with faint hops and chalk. Pitch black pour with a pretty, dark brown dense and rocky head. Taste is big chocolate black malt and roast, dark and sultry, only lightly bitter (from what was expected) with a little prickling, reasonably well hidden alcohol in the sweet mid-body and a viscous, sludge feel going into the aftertaste. Dry and dark. Big story here is the oatmeal! Swimming in it, great flavor. Prunes and a salty end. Lovely citric hops taking over toward the end [along with a little Fuji apple and red berry], relatively mild but contributing a lot, and not of the normal Stone profile; they’re enough to pull this over a 4.0 for me. Really nice, going to go try it with some cheese, should be great.

bottle, black viscous pour, milkshake head, perfect pour, nose of oatmeal, chocolate and roasted coffee, flavor is sublime chocolate and smooth , finish is well done cocoa, malty like marshmallows

Deep opaque charcoal-brown body, medium tan head. Roasty aroma with chocolate and dark fruits. The dominant characteristic of the body is bitter, roasted malt, but there is a plummy, bready sweetness balancing the bitter roast and chocolate. Salty soy notes are also detectable. Chewy and rich.

(bottle - 22 oz) Dark black pour with a thin tan head. Aroma is surprisingly light with a decent amount of roasted and burnt malts, some dark fruits, and some sweetness. Almost like a combination of caramel and cream. Flavor begins lightly sweet but then the chocolate takes over. Lightly bittersweet with a mild roasted middle. Finishes lightly bitter and fruity. Oatmeal adds a nice creamy texture to the beer.

Bottled. Pitch black with a small to medium brown head. Quite malty with notes of chocolate, hops, grain, hops and a hint of ashtray - also a bit vinous. Quite nice and well balanced.