Snow Blind Imperial Stout
Upstream Brewing Company - Old Market

Beer Geek Stats
From:
Upstream Brewing Company - Old Market
 
Nebraska, United States
Style:
Russian Imperial Stout
ABV:
10%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
4.11 | pDev: 9.25%
Reviews:
3
Ratings:
8
Status:
Active
Rated:
Apr 14, 2014
Added:
Dec 31, 2010
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
Snow Blind Imperial Stout is about 10% ABV and is made with enormous amounts of two-row malts, chocolate malts, roasted barley, flaked oats and hops. Snow Blinds huge-but-comforting flavors hide a whopping 60 IBU's that are deftly tucked underneath the beer's mountains of malty goodness.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Ratings by ssjkyle:
Photo of ssjkyle
Rated by ssjkyle from Nebraska

4.75/5  rDev +15.6%

Jul 14, 2012
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.25 by mychalg9 from Illinois

Apr 14, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by amandapants from Washington

Jun 04, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by beerdhabelly from Nebraska

Oct 26, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by JSchock7 from Kansas

Jul 16, 2012
Photo of falloutsnow
Reviewed by falloutsnow from Illinois

3.69/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Had on tap at the Crescent Moon in Omaha, NE
Review from notes

Upstream's RIS is a good presentation of the style, though I would enjoy a more aromatic beer with greater range of roasted flavor profiles. Still, as a locally produced and available beer, I'm glad that it's available and would enjoy another.

Arrives with a thin, ashen black-grey head with copious lacing, maintains a perpetual cap atop the glass. Body is black, completely opaque.

Aroma is fairly subtle, some roasted malt characters and some general sweetness. Not picking up any special coffee or chocolate, as I might expect from other examples of the style.

Taste opens with mild sweetness, leading into moderate roasted malt flavors and roasted malt bitterness. These flavors continue, with mild caramel-like sweetness noted during mid-taste through finish. Closes out with roasted malt bitterness that continues to linger for a bit.

The beer is medium to medium-heavy in body, with expected smoothness from the oats alongside a modest carbonation that allows for easy sipping of this beer. Finish is expectedly dry from the roast malt and hop usage.
Apr 02, 2012
Photo of Mebuzzard
Reviewed by Mebuzzard from Colorado

4.17/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
A dark beer, for sure. Head is minimal, but the little that's there is off brown, dense and provides a nice lacing.

Great aroma. Coffee and black plum, chocolate and roasted malt. Dark toast.

Taste threw me for a loop. The coffee and black plum that were prominent in the nose take a back seat to chocolate and prune/raisin. A smooth transition in the middle to the coffee and tannin, but for the most part this is a smooth tasting beer that has strength. Robust but no overly complex.

A nice night cap, for it does pack a punch
Mar 14, 2012
Photo of marcellaproust
Reviewed by marcellaproust from Washington

4/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Little or no head, dense animated carbonation. The nose is fairly subtle, with coffee and malt. This is a blockbuster: syrupy feel and heavy body, nearly opaque black-brown color. Taste is winey all the way through, beginning with fermented coffee bean (and perhaps black cherry?) and then finishing, long and loyally, with a medicinal, Ricola drops-herbal dry finish. While there are caramel notes throughout, there is no nuttiness or sweetness, just the idea of sweetness because of the heavy flavor. I'm beginning to see more of this in dark porters and stouts and applaud it: undercutting any sweet or syrupy overkill by lively carbonation.
Dec 31, 2010
Snow Blind Imperial Stout from Upstream Brewing Company - Old Market
Beer rating: 4.11 out of 5 with 8 ratings