Blaecorn Unidragon
Clown Shoes

Blaecorn UnidragonBlaecorn Unidragon
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From:
Clown Shoes
 
Massachusetts, United States
Style:
Russian Imperial Stout
Ranked #318
ABV:
11.5%
Score:
91
Ranked #6,528
Avg:
4.09 | pDev: 9.78%
Reviews:
400
Ratings:
1,696
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 25, 2024
Added:
Sep 25, 2011
Wants:
  131
Gots:
  498
Brewed with a monstrous amount of malt and combined with aggressive American hops, this beer is powerful and complex and designed to age. Smokiness is subtle but present and blends nicely with the rich, dark flavors.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by tectactoe:
Photo of tectactoe
Reviewed by tectactoe from Michigan

4.12/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
On tap at the Oak Cafe. Jet black (the ink that spells your name)... That one's for the Thursday fans out there. A long-lasting, chunky cappuccino colored head rests quietly on top and just sits, and sits, and sits, and seems like it's never going to vanish. Lovely. Nice lacing is left along the glass from this mofo, too - overall, pretty damn pretty for a 12.5% ABV imperial stout.

Intense roast on the nose - abrasive enough to scorch your nostril hairs but delicate enough to cradle you to sleep. Burnt coffee beans, mild boozy notes, and a hint of dark fruit. I wanna say vanilla's in there, too, so I'll go ahead and say it... Vanilla's in there, too. The roast is definitely what stands out the most about this brew. Heavily burnt and charred with slight notes of ash and charcoal as well.

The first sip contains a spoonful of that deep-ass roast, only now it has a thick and syrupy robustness to it that instantly defines this beer as a classic sipper. Boozy - no bourbon, whiskey, or any kinds of rich liquor, just straight up, unabashed alcohol adding to the strength of the brew and falling just short of an annoyance. Roasted malts, oily, French roast coffee beans, mild char and ashy notes - a worm burner, no doubt.

Despite the intense amounts of bitter roast, sweetness is available in many different forms that help balance, layer, and add flavor. Creamy sweet, vanilla undertones, gritty brown sugar, and an overripe, dark prune finish. Bitter and sweet clashing like Rocky and Apollo - a fair fight that sways back and forth but remains pretty even overall. Nice body, thick and oily and borderline chewy with low and soft carbonation.

Out of the five Clown Shoes beers that were sampled this night, Blaecorn Unidragon was by far my favorite of the bunch. Sifting through reviews, I can see that it seems like many people aren't on board with copious amounts of burnt and roasty flavors, but I love it. I'll admit that this beer would be hard to drink in large amounts, both due to the intensity of the flavors as well as the ABV, but it's definitely a nice, cheap RIS to sit back and sip on a cold day.
Aug 06, 2013
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.08 by Agriverbear from Texas

Feb 25, 2024
 
Rated: 4.43 by ArfArf from Minnesota

Jan 01, 2024
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

3.93/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
2022 16 oz can from Appalachian Vintner in Asheville NC.

Pours thick, near black, and nearly opaque, although ruby colored edges can be seen in the right light. Exceptionally full bodied with light carbonation and a faint oiliness. This is a very rich imperial stout with a massive load of dark roasted grains and enough hops to make one think of a Black IPA. It has subtle smokiness and moderate+ bitterness for the style.
Dec 21, 2023
Photo of stevoj
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bomber from Big Al's. Dark, dark brown, small bubbly beige head. Aroma is chocoalte and roast, rich and full. So far, amazing. It gets better. Bittersweet chocolate, coffee, burnt toast, woody. Hefty, full. Definitely worthy of its score.
Nov 23, 2023
 
Rated: 4.11 by lic217 from Connecticut

Nov 08, 2023
Photo of Argail
Rated by Argail from Louisiana

4.69/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
16oz can 2023, 10.5%, tasty well made stout pl more for me) cheers
Jul 31, 2023
 
Rated: 4.09 by joran from Kansas

May 21, 2023
 
Rated: 4.5 by MonkeyPilates from Minnesota

Apr 30, 2023
 
Rated: 3.96 by Techichi from Texas

Mar 15, 2023
Photo of Newbeergeek1
Reviewed by Newbeergeek1 from Maine

3.77/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Some interesting things going on here and, for my tastes, it didn’t quite measure up to what my favorite style of beer should taste like. A little too malty for me. Decent beer, glad I tried it but one was enough.
Mar 14, 2023
 
Rated: 3.92 by Pleasure from New Hampshire

Mar 12, 2023
Photo of tradershmulie
Reviewed by tradershmulie from Connecticut

3.93/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Nice pour. Some head that didn't disappear too quickly.

While drinking, actually get nose of some hoppiness.

This did not taste as expected. For an RIS, I expected more. Very bland.
Feb 05, 2023
 
Rated: 4.59 by Curt3 from Ohio

Dec 07, 2022
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

4.31/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
RBESG in Barcelona. Shared bottle at BrewDog bar. Russian imperial stout, 12.5%. Pitch black colour, tan head. Roasty aroma and flavour, coffee, dark chocolate, vanilla and oak. Well hopped, some smoke. Slightly warming mouthfeel, but dangerously easy drinking for its strength. Excellent beer.
Mar 20, 2021
 
Rated: 4 by Patches826 from Massachusetts

Dec 18, 2020
 
Rated: 4.25 by RiceOwls27 from Texas

Jul 08, 2020
 
Rated: 4.26 by BadgerNCarolina from North Carolina

Jul 04, 2020
Photo of rodbeermunch
Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada

3.73/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Had this at bonerhog's place for the McGregor/Cowboy fight, was glad to finally get rid of this bottle that had been in my cellar for some reason. Was actually impressed with it.

Pours exactly as you would expect a big ass RIS to pour. Black, with 1/2" brown head on top, ample retention. The aroma was all the plentiful heavily roasted malt. Pleasantly surprised to get more smoke out of this than RIS yeast giving off a ton of dried pruno vibes.

Taste was pretty good, still pushing tons of roasted malt weight, smoke in the right proportion, and minimal pruno bitterness. Mouth feel was adequately carbonated, not sludgy or too hefty. Even the bitterness hit its right stride. Hid the alcohol very well. This is what I like about an RIS, when it has a minimal presence of my most disliked aspect of the beer, its yeasty raisin and pruno notes.

All in all, its a very good no adjunct imperial stout at a decent price with wide distribution. Imagine how high the ratings would be if it was super scarce!
Apr 09, 2020
Photo of Msp004
Reviewed by Msp004 from New York

4.25/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
2015 22oz bottle pours black with two finger tan head which is gone in a short time , minimal lacing.

Nose is sweetness and roasted malt, dark friut (fig , raisins) rich and complex.

Mouth is dark fruit, malt, bitter sweet dark chocolate, dark roast coffee and a whiskey finish.

Great Russian Imperial
Apr 09, 2020
Blaecorn Unidragon from Clown Shoes
Beer rating: 91 out of 100 with 1696 ratings