 doubleo (720), San Diego, California, USA
Dec 29, 2007 Updated: Aug 14, 2008
Side by side vertical of the 05, 06 and 07 releases. All three vintages were in 22oz bombers. I drank all three out of the same exact style of glasses, beginning with the youngest release.
Aroma:
07: Dark malts, alcohol and dark over-ripe fruits.
06: Very subdued compared to the 07. I mostly get alcohol with just a hint of malt.
05: Sweet caramelly malts bounce off my nose. Alcohol in the background.
Appearance:
All three years pour almost exactly the same color, basically pitch black. The 05 may be a touch darker in color, the 06 and 07 seem to have more brown highlights. The 05 had very little head at all and the 06 and 07 had a thin, but dense brown head that faded quickly to just a ring around the glass.
Flavor:
07: Dark fruits hit me first, then the sweet dark maltiness, than the alcohol.
06: Very sweet. Kind of a caramelly brown sugar flavor throughout. Dark sweet malts/fruits pop-up towards the finish.
05: Mellow sweetness up front. Tangy but sweet dark fruit taste through the middle. A little boozey tingle on the finish.
Palate:
07: The thickest of all three, crisp carbonation.
06: Thick but a touch watery, somewhat subdued carbonation.
05: Thick, coats the mouth more so than the others.
Overall: Needless to say this brew is great. The 06 has always been my favorite but there is something I like about the 07. Probably the more vibrant carbonation. If I don’t have an aggressive barrel aged beer to drink than this is a solid call.
daknole (644), Plantation, Florida, USA
Aug 17, 2008 Bomber, and yes finally! Balck pour and a nice brown head. Aromas of chocolate, prunes, coffee, booze. Flavors of nice chocolaote, espresso, dark dried fruits, HELL YES! HELL YES! MMMMMM!
tagz (304), USA
Aug 16, 2008 draft. i wasn’t as blown away as i thought i’d be by this one, but perhaps i need a full pint to give it a true rating. certainly a well rounded RIS - dominated by licorice, thick but not too cloying, solid roasty bitter, alcohol isn’t noticeable in flavor. i guess i was just expecting to get blown away and i tend to prefer cocoa and coffee over licorice flavors. definitely a solid beer and i wouldn’t think of turning one down, but best in the world? not for me.. yet.
jonno (151), Japan
Aug 15, 2008 Probably the best Imperial Stout I’ve tried...but I have limited experience. Rich, fruity and and packing a wallop. You have to drink this from the proper glass...I drank from a pint glass at the thrash zone in Yokohama and it just wasn’t the same
bretupdegraff (32), , Indiana, USA
Aug 13, 2008 Very nice - Thanks for the bomber derekbang! Sampled this right after the Speedway Stout. Not sure which I like better. I think the speedway was a bit smoother but I think I liked the taste of this one a little better. Not sure what the spice/flavor was but it stood and and agreed with my palate. I look forward to next season so that I can get my hands on some more of this
mabel (1583), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Aug 13, 2008 [1526-20080711] 1pt6floz bottle. Dark roasted burnt wood aroma has a hint of charred sweet caramel. Black black brown body with a medium-lasting creamy brown head. More roasty wooden malt in the flavour. Full body is heavy. Could stand another six months to a year of sitting, but it’s quite nice now too.
(w/ blankboy, GregClow, HogTownHarry, jerc, tupalev)
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