Tag Archives: imperial stout

Insidious Imperial Stout

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This is the last of my stash of bottles from Fegley’s Brew Works.

Here’s what they say:

Rich and seductively smooth with complex chocolate and roasted flavors and hints of dark fruit. We conjure this by squeezing the life from two-row pale malts, chocolate and caramel malts and roasted barley. Then we boil their spirits with East Kent Golding hops, and unleash an English ale yeast to feast upon and transform the remains. What emerges is a black deity-sized libation that will be your portal to the dark side.

Bottled conditioned for natural carbonation, you may cellar Insidious for several years for additional smoothness…though be warned, it’s temptation will perpetually haunt you.

ABV 9.0%  •  IBU 40  •  O.G. 1.088

It’s been “hanging out” since July. I think I’ve waited long enough.

It pours dark. Very dark. The head is thick and light brown. A bit of chocolate and dried fruit in the aroma. Mouthfeel starts out just the tiniest bit lighter than I expect, but there’s only a little bit of roasted coffee and chocolate in the taste, along with some of that dried fruit. I can’t decide whether perhaps it needed to cellar a bit more or if I’ve opened it too late.

This is not my favorite imperial stout ever, but I’m enjoying it right now.

Insidious Imperial Stout

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

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Beer-a-Day #353 Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

We use three mashes to brew each batch of this beer, achieving a luscious deep dark chocolate flavor through a blend of specially roasted malts. We brew it every year for the winter season. It is delicious when newly bottled, but also ages beautifully for years.

This is an old favorite. Dark as night, with a thick, tan head. Deep, roasty chocolate aroma. More roasty chocolate in the flavor. This is darn good, but at 10% ABV it’s a occasional treat. I’ll need to cellar some.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Oskar Blues Ten Fidy Imperial Stout

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Beer-a-Day #312 beer can unemployment line

I was at my favorite retailer recently and I was able to score seven craft beers in cans. A perfect excuse to make this “Can Week”.

Next up: Ten Fidy Imperial Stout from Oskar Blues.

It’s the beer equivalent of decadently rich milkshake made with malted-milk balls and Heaven’s best chocolate ice cream. Ten FIDY is about 10% ABV and is made with enormous amounts of two-row malts, chocolate malts, roasted barley, flaked oats and hops. Its huge-but-comforting flavors hide a whopping 98 IBUs that are deftly tucked underneath the beer’s mountains of malty goodness.

Oskar Blues Ten Fidy Imperial StoutDeep, opaque brown, with a head that looks like chocolate mousse. Lots of chocolate roastiness in the aroma. Boy, that smells good. The taste doesn’t disappoint. It’s big and malty and the bitterness, if anything, seems understated. That is really good.

Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti

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Beer-a-Day #299Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti

…Yeti Imperial Stout’s sophisticated sibling. They may be from the same clan, but they have entirely different personalities. Oak aging gives a subtle vanilla character, rounding out Yeti’s intense roastiness and huge hoppy nature. Who says you can’t tame a Yeti?  (9.5% ABV)

Pours as dark and thick as used engine oil; the head looks like a chocolate milkshake. Lots of nice roastiness with some vanilla in the aroma. You can really taste the oak. That’s some good stuff.

Great Divide Brewing

Victory Storm King Stout

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Beer-a-Day #280Victory Storm King Stout

Ron loves this stout. Why wouldn’t he? It’s big and bold and full of hop goodness.

With a huge, Pacific Northwest hop aroma & character upfront, Storm King subsides into massive, roast malt complexity. More flavor than mere words can adequately describe. Rich and substantial, it will warm your heart.

Dark as midnight on a moonless night, with a thick head the color of coffee ice cream. Aroma is deep, reminding me both of roasted coffee and chocolate covered cherries. Big, complex flavor, with more coffee, roastiness, and a nice hop finish. At 9.1% ABV this will be my only beer of the evening, but I will savor it.

Victory Storm King Stout

Weyerbacher Old Heathen Imperial Stout

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Weyerbacher Old Heathen labelBeer-a-Day #95

I’ve had this before, but it’s been quite a while, and I’ve never written about it, so…

Color of used motor oil, with a head that looks like a chocolate milkshake and a nice cascade. Chocolate, coffee, and toffee notes in the aroma. More coffee and chocolate in the flavor, with some nice roastiness and bitterness.

I seem to recall that the last time I had this I didn’t like it, but my palate must be evolving, because I rather like this now.

Weyerbacher Old Heathen Imperial Stout

Storm King, King of Stouts

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stormking2Throughout the sampling of my 40 birthday beers, I am also interleaving some of my normal stock. And, as always, my normal stock contains either something new, or something I haven’t had in a long while.

Victory’s Storm King Imperial Stout was a beer I bought myself to share at my 40th party and we never dipped into it. It is one that I haven’t had in a long time. When I finally got around to having one the other day after recently sampling several great stouts over the past month, I was taken back by how good great this beer is.

Storm King is a stout that can hold up a thick, rich, malt with a bounty of hops. Hop nose and bitterness surrounds this stout seemingly to border on a style of porter I’ve been in search of for so long.

Sometimes I wonder why I keep tying new beers when I’ve already found something I love. But, tastes change and repetition can get boring. In the meantime, Storm King is my “go to” stout, and I’m giving it 4.5+ on the unofficial Hop-Talk scale.

Sorry Guinness, today America takes back the title.

Heavy Seas Peg Leg Imperial Stout

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Heavy Seas Peg Leg Imperial StoutBeer-a-Day #15

I generally like Clipper City’s offerings. That they’re local is another bonus.

Pours dark brown with a medium brown head that quickly drops to a layer of foam. Definitely a lot of roast coffee in the aroma, as well as a bunch of caramel. More coffee in the flavor, as well as molasses. Nice and creamy.

Clipper City Heavy Seas line


Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout

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Great Divide Yeti Imperial StoutBeer-a-Day #14

“Imposing” and “Untamed” trumpets the label.

Pours an inky brown with a dark brown head. Caramel and a bit of coffee in the aroma. It smells rich. Nice roasted flavor with a surprising amount of bitterness at the end. I really like this. This will certainly become a regular visitor.

Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout