White Label Imperial Russian Stout - Glen Elgin Barrel Aged
Brouwerij Emelisse

 

 

 

12oz bottle into a snifter. The brew appears black in color with a thin line of lighter brown clarity around the edges when held to the light. A finger of silky tan head appears across the top and fades to a thin film that holds throughout the duration. A full wall of lace sticks to the glass. A light swirl revives a half finger back to the surface.

The aroma of this brew includes notes of fruity whiskey. Some raw oaky character is also present. There is a tanginess present in the nose that while enjoyable by some regards I do not find to be the most pleasant character. A solvent tingle of alcohol burn is felt across the back that gets increasingly bold as the brew warms up.

The flavor of this is tangy with alcohol notes as I described in the aromatics. Some suggestions of raw oak are also present giving a slight hint of something like spicy wood like incense or cedar instead of a used spirit barrel. There is a bit of roastiness present that blends into herbal hops before the fruity tang of spirit reinforced alcohol dominates the finish.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest amount of carbonation. The alcohol while noticeable is not outlandish for an 11% brew. I am a big fan of breweries who do experiments with aging a beer in different barrels. Getting to try this after having one of the other barrel aged treatments was a pleasant surprise and shocking how different they were. Worth trying if you get the opportunity but not something I would go out of my way for now that I have had it once.

Jet black with a hint of garnet and no head at all - no surprise given the ABV. Chocolate, fig, smoke and oak on the nose.
Vanilla, brown sugar, oily coffee, rum and sultana with no noticeable hops.
Warm woody brandy finish and boozy linger. Medium to full, chewy, dead smooth.

Lots of depth. The oak is understated and the body is very rounded. A winner.

Purchased this bottle at the Bier Koning in Amsterdam.

A - No foam at all. Pours dark and looks like dark liquor.

S - Strong malt scent with chocolate, peats, and alcohol.

T - Big flavor in areas of peat, malts, and the warmth of alcohol making it like a mild single malt scotch. I agree that some carbonation and some more hops would raise this beers score.

M - Again the lack of carbonation gives this beer a liquor type mouthfeel as well as the somewhat lack of body that one would expect from a Russian Imperial Stout.

O - While I did like this beer it goes without saying that carbonation does a beer good. The recipe is great and maybe a few more hops would help. I look forward to the future releases of this beer to see how ingredients might have evolved.

A: Dark beer looks more like a cola who lost his carbonation.

S: Almost odorless

T: Perfect bitterness, but a bit dull taste.

M: Nice bitter aftertaste with a slight tingling and slightly syrupy.

O: It seems as the beer lost his quality, but although after a few sips the beer still getting better.

A - Never did I see a RIS with lesser head than this one, because it doesn't have any. It is like poring cold black coffee in my Struise glass.

S - The smell is good however; dark chocolate, booze, peat and wood.

T - This beer is dead, no carbonation. Yet the flavor is still there and how. A strong whiskey beer. Not bad at all, but a little carbonation would have been nice. Little sweet, bitter and whiskey booze.

M - Like I said; no carbonation and a boozy bitter aftertaste.

O - I did expect more of this one, because it is not the first beer Emelisse makes. Maybe it was a bad bottle, I will have another try later.