Viking Brewing Big Swede

Brewed by Viking Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Dallas, Wisconsin USA

The aroma is chocolate, coffee, and a light banana. The appearance is a dark black but you can still catch a glimmer of light through it. There’s a thin whiteish head. The flavor is rich and chocolatey and coffee, caramel, and creamy. A bomber for $3? Holy cow. The palate is thick and creamy. Bonus points for this being only $3 for 22oz.

Bottle: Courtesy of Styles at Kuhnhenn’s. Chocolate and coffee aromas as exected but a strong fruit character in the aroma as well. Pours a dark brown with faint orange hilights. Chocolate, caramel, and coffee with a moderate fruit presence. Alcohol is noticeable in the finish as well as a sweet roasted coffee. Decent, but doesn’t really come across as an imperial stout.

I disregarded my foil top phobia in sampling this Imperial Stout. Poured black, with small off white head and fair lacing. Fruity aroma with mild coffee in the aroma. Medium bodied beer, light sweetness, toasted malts, smoke, creaminess and bitter finish. I found Big Swede a cross between a barleywine and an imperial stout.

Sampled around a campfire in my thick glass camping mug. Aroma of coffee, raisins, cherries and some chocolate. It is sorta fruity. My flashlight tells me this one is dark black with a light brown head. Flavor of coffee and hot chocolate with raisins. Fairly roasty. Initially sweet, good bitterness in the finish, but not too bitter at all. Creamy, full palate, but not as full and creamy as some Imperial Stouts. Great for the price! Can’t believe this was only $3 for a bomber.

Wow,this brew has a really different nose for a Impy.More like lingonberryies and super roasted malts.Chocolatey and some toffee.Taste was more of the roasted malts and bitter chocolate than the aroma was.Good because I wasn’t hoping for a lingonberry beer.

Carmelly malt roasty aroma, ans alcoholy berry taste, almost like a porter wine or brandy, more a barleywine than a stout.

Round two of Imperial Stout night. Finishing off with the Big Swede!!! Big Swede doesn’t pour out with allot of head. Black as volcanic glass. It says its big and rich and it most certainly is. Very nice sweet undertone and bite following. Unsual combination but very very good. This one is unique in this style because most imp. stouts initially try to tear off your face with their potentcy. This one is subtle, stalking you. Making sure that you’re going to love this one. Finish with candy/caramel flavorings for a very satisfying experience. Another freaking fantastic Wisconsin beer and one everybody should be in acquistion mode. John aka JPDIPSO, you’re the best!!!!

This imperial stout is big on chocolate. Very syrupy and sweet, with relatively little roastiness. I also picked up hints of honey and flowery hops. There is an odd metallic aftertaste and lots of fruity white wine flavors, a tad astringent, which is either due to a lot of honey or the yeasts that Viking uses. I say this because both the Honey Moon and Mjod have this same sort of flavor which, while working well for the meads/braggots, does not work with an imperial stout. Although far from tasteless and fairly enjoyable to drink, this beer does not sit well with me overall as an imperial stout.