Contemporary Works - Surround
Stillwater Artisanal Ales

Contemporary Works - SurroundContemporary Works - Surround
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From:
Stillwater Artisanal Ales
 
Washington, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
Ranked #1,681
ABV:
10%
Score:
90
Ranked #10,282
Avg:
4.01 | pDev: 8.48%
Reviews:
72
Ratings:
242
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jun 09, 2022
Added:
Dec 19, 2014
Wants:
  7
Gots:
  38
Imperial Oak-Smoked Wheat Stout.

Like a sound system that fills the room with audibles swarming in every direction. This massive stout overtakes your senses with aromas & flavor of dark chocolate, caramel, roast, smoke, earth & wood, It's heavy I know, but you have to drop that bass every once in a while if you really wanna get down.
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Ratings by JerzDevl2000:
Photo of JerzDevl2000
Reviewed by JerzDevl2000 from New Jersey

4.19/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Picked this up a few weeks back at the Whole Foods on Houston St. in New York. I never had this before nor any beer from Stillwater Artisanal Ales and I was intrigued by the design on the bottle and the notion of an Imperial Oak-Smoked Wheat Stout. Amazingly, that's exactly what this beer was and the complexity of it really grew on me once this warmed up and I worked my through it. Surely, there's not a Stout on the shelf currently that compared to this!

Solid pour to this, as the dark brown hue, chocolate head, and intricate lacing all indicated that this was nicely crafted. Not a strong aroma to this but the oak smoked feel really came through in it, with a bit of espresso underneath it also coming through. Lots of that was in the taste, with burnt coffee, cocoa, and dark malt really rounding everything out. Toasted, smoked, and full, the wheat lent a Bock-like feel to this while the booze served as a reminder that this was indeed a Stout. The carbonation was good enough to take a bit of the edge off of this but there was a lot of roasted and charred feeling in the aftertaste as the harshness of this never really faded away.

This was strong but because it was so balanced and flavorful, I had to hold myself back from finishing this too quickly. I love it when a beer surprises me and that was the case here as this almost served as a cross between a Weizenbock and an Imperial Stout. The subtle notion of dark fruit reminded me of the former and had there been more of that, this could have been a beer for the ages. Chewy, cloying, and somewhat creamy, the mouthfeel was an indication that this was brewed right, and deserved to be more than a limited release. Wonderfully complex stuff that put Stillwater on the map for me.
Apr 16, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.29 by petrusek23 from Ohio

Jun 09, 2022
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

2.89/5  rDev -27.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
RBESG 2016 in Barcelona. On tap at the Garage. Black colour. Very malty aroma and flavour, a bit unfresh, too moderate hops. Not much smoke though. Did not blow my socks off this one.
May 10, 2021
Photo of EMV
Reviewed by EMV from Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Inky black pour with 2 fingers of fluffy brown head. Great lacing.

S: Strong and roasty... smoke, coffee, and oak.

T/F: Follows the nose. Rich and charred.... French roast coffee, burned sugars, wood, and dark chocolate. Light smoke but not overpowering... works well with the woody flavor. Bitter roast with sweetness coming through mid swig. Medium to full bodied... creamy and smooth. More roast and smoke at the finish.

O: A big rich sipper of a stout. Strong flavor and very tasty.... one to savor as it warms.
Feb 09, 2019
 
Rated: 4.46 by stephenlee from England

Aug 07, 2018
 
Rated: 4.37 by Electros from Canada (ON)

Jul 15, 2018
Photo of Captain69
Rated by Captain69 from Illinois

3.9/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
GREAT FLAVOR STRONG IMP STOUT TASTE - WITH SMOOOTHH AFTER TASTE
May 30, 2018
 
Rated: 3.79 by Isarnan from Michigan

May 23, 2018
Photo of MaltyPythonsHopCircus
Reviewed by MaltyPythonsHopCircus from Canada (BC)

4.27/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours quite dark with small tight tan head that dissipates quite quickly. Nose is subtle smoke, chocolate and licorice. Those follow onto the palate as the flavour opens up with bakers chocolate, coffee grounds, licorice, tobacco and a hint of wood
Feb 09, 2018
 
Rated: 3.5 by 1971bernat from Virginia

Jan 03, 2018
 
Rated: 3.65 by Hoonia from Missouri

Dec 04, 2017
 
Rated: 3.94 by ZachT from Canada (BC)

Nov 22, 2017
 
Rated: 4.12 by sdm9465 from Canada (NS)

Oct 06, 2017
 
Rated: 4.75 by JavierGC from Spain

Oct 04, 2017
 
Rated: 4.5 by jwat from Pennsylvania

Jul 04, 2017
 
Rated: 4.46 by Gagnonsux from Texas

Apr 21, 2017
Photo of biboergosum
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)

3.62/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12oz bottle - an 'oak smoked imperial wheat stout'. Yeah, about par for the course for this brewing concern.

This beer pours a solid black hole, with not even the barest of basal edges, and two fingers of puffy, finely foamy, and somewhat creamy brown head, which leaves some heady border wall (in theory) lace around the glass as it lazily recedes.

It smells of gritty and grainy caramel malt, bittersweet cocoa powder, dry cafe-au-lait, some plain dark orchard fruitiness, a further hint of toasted wheat cereal, some ethereal wet char, an equally faint generic oaken woodiness, and a sense of alcohol love unrequited. The taste is rather dry chocolate wafers, sort of reduced wheat and pale malts, a still subtle oakiness, some free-range wet ash, muddled dark stone fruit, day-old coffee, very earthy vanilla, and some fairly well-behaved big-boy booziness.

The carbonation is quite active in its perky frothiness, the body a decent medium-heavy weight, and not particularly smooth, as the char, weird graininess, and burgeoning heat all perform a negative number right about here. It finishes trending very dry, the cocoa and java notes carrying us right on out past the velvet ropes.

Overall, this is yet another offering from this outfit (one that seems to be the American version of Mikkeller - yeah, I know, San Diego, and all that - which is not a compliment), that has just too much going on to really be worthy of any sort of perceived balance or basic appreciation. I admit, I was curious upon first sussing this one out, but now, I'm not so sure.
Mar 01, 2017
 
Rated: 3.81 by HopBelT from Belgium

Feb 17, 2017
Photo of Harrison8
Reviewed by Harrison8 from Missouri

3.98/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Pours black with a finger of dark caramel head. Head foams up fairly quick, with extremely tight foam. Retention is modest, with a little lacing left behind. Smoke, and roasted malts at the front of the aroma immediately give a dark presence. Wheat, and malted barley bring the aroma slightly out of the darkness. Flavor profile is oats, smoke, roasted malts, malted barley, and wheat. Live earthy characteristics mingle with charred and burnt earthy flavors. Finishes a little bitter. Mouth feel is a grainy, almost ash-like suspended in medium-thick liquid. Overall, smoke characteristics are strong enough to be at the forefront, and yet are not totally off-putting. Well created, with a solid, earthy experience.

Served in a 12oz snifter.
Feb 14, 2017
Photo of bushbeer75
Reviewed by bushbeer75 from Michigan

3.89/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
12 oz brown bottle - bottled on 113:15

Stillwater Contemporary Works - Surround has an almost black body with a slight red cast. An easy pour produced a short [1/2-finger] dark tan head. Light lacing clung to my tulip glass. The nose picked up the pleasant aroma of dark chocolate, coffee, and dark fruit. The taste matches the nose with caramel, and burnt toast also noted. Grapefruit hops showed-up at the finish to provide a light and lingering hop aftertaste. The body is light-heavy for its style. The mouth feel is smooth, and a little chewy. Medium carbonation is noted.

This Imperial Stout is not too filling for the style making for good drinkability.
Feb 02, 2017
Contemporary Works - Surround from Stillwater Artisanal Ales
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 242 ratings