Imperial Stout
Founders Brewing Company

12oz bottle into Duvel tulip. No bottled on info, but I bought it recently (and Founders beers don't usually stay in Boston stores for very long after release).

Appearance: Free pour yields a one inch, dark brown head that dissipates somewhat quickly and lacelessly. Looks very viscous and not very carbonated while being poured. Solid black. Some random, short lived swatches of lacing.

Smell: The look was underwhelming, but the smell was not. Coffee, cocoa, dark chocolate, lots of malt. Sugary. Some very interesting and hard to pin down notes--strong and multidimensional, like a great Russian Imperial Stout should be.

There's molasses, a little brown sugar, and a growing symphony of pastry like malt aromas. The whole here is greater than the sum of its parts. Close to perfection.

Taste: First sip follows the nose, with lots of dark chocolate, caramel, and some mild coffee liqueur flavors (I love these rum-like or liqueur-like flavors in stouts), with a roasted malt finish. Undercarbonation hindering my enjoyment.

Second sip still flattened by too little carbonation, but bringing a new surge of dark fruit and anise, with a big, almost nutty roasted malt character at the end. High bitterness perfectly offsets the numerous rich and sweet flavors. Confused by this beer... the carbonation level is really hurting it, but the flavors are so numerous, so well done, and so harmonious.

In the end, I'm won over. This beer is as generous and complex as Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, but less hot and considerably more restrained and balanced. It could be more carbonated, but the good aspects are soaringly good.

Mouthfeel: Full bodied, but not as thick as it looks. Low carbonation (would definitely be better with more). Great roasted malt and hop bitterness at the end, though not very dry. While the alcohol is well masked in the main flavor, there's a building heat in the aftertaste.

Overall: Great beer, like a better Old Rasputin or a grown up Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (like BCS spends its youth rampaging around, sowing its wild oats, then after it gets wiser and more skillful, becomes Founders Imperial Stout). What you'd expect from a brewery like Founders; lots of flavor, lots of balance.

Was excited to find this at the bottle shop but the date was illegible. Nose was promising on the crack of the bottle with some dark chocolate, coffee, dark fruit. the pour was a different story. It's thick, black but unfortunately, no head even on a pretty vigorous pour. Taste is dry and a little cardboardy but gets better with a little warmth-dark chocolate, bakers chocolate, coffee and some milk chocolate, mild bitterness. Body is medium to full, hardly and carbonation to speak of. My guess is this was a beautiful beer when fresh and I'll try to rate it as such, but disappointed this didn't hold up better.

Copenhagen 9/5 2020. 35,5 cl bottle from Best of Beers web-shop. What looks like an American take on a European Coat of Arms on the label. Two-headed Eagle, a big crown and a Sct. George battling a fairly small Dragon.

Pours opaque dark brown with a medium-sized beige head. Settles as thin, flimsy layer of foam just covering the surface of the beer. Crawling up the sides of the glass. Moderate lacing.

Aroma is intense and with a good balance of the sweet, the earthy and sour. Brown sugar, caramel. Roast. Sour grains. Leather and tobacco. Earthy odor of wet soil.

Light carbonation. Thick, viscous, fat, soft, creamy texture

Flavor is intense with strong sweetness followed by a medium strong bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter with a strong sweet undercurrent. Lingering. Finish has a distinct boozy burn.

Potent and not too sweet, imperial boozer.

 

Black like tar, with a thin brown head. A Symphony of coffee roasted malt and chocolate in aroma, with a touch of dark fruits. Taste follows the aroma. It is a very smooth and rich brew, with a warming finish.

 

 

 

 

Perfect example of the imperial stout style. Ages very well in the cellar and gets better over time. This beer really warms you up on a cold winter night.

2015 vintage

Look- pitch black with a thick dark mocha head. Very tight bubbles that slowly dissipate.

Smell - dark cocao and roasty malt

Taste- chocolate up front with coffee notes on the finish

Feel - creamy with light carbonation. A little chewy

Overall- Not sure if this is one of those beers at just the right time moments, but this just hit me hard. Was really feeling it and was super impressed for this 8yr old stout. Almost no signs of oxidation. Drink em if ya got em!

 

 

 

 

12 oz bottle
Bottled On Date: 11/20/2016
Consumed on: 20 Nov, 2022
Glass: Snifter
ABV: 10.5%
Serving Temp: 49.3 F


Look:
Jet black with a brown head that is very thin. The head quickly dissipates to a ring with some film over parts of the beer. What lacing exists is excellent.

Smell:
Dark, bittersweet chocolate and coffee. Char. Molasses. Anise. Caramelized and somewhat burnt sugar. A fair amount of earth.

Taste:
An earthy and bitter hit up front, but nothing overwhelming. This becomes char, dark chocolate, and some coffee. Molasses and anise follow. The earthy notes return towards the end. The sip finishes bittersweet and this lingers into and through the aftertaste which is very much unsweetened chocolate.

Feel:
Silky and mouth-coating. A nice warmth from the alcohol. The body is only a shade or 2 lighter than full.

Overall:
An excellent (Russian) Imperial Stout. One of my favorites of the style. I buy it when I see it. Which last was in 2019.

I purchased this beer fresh back in December, 2016. It has been in my cellar ever since. It has handled its age (6 years) quite well I would say.

 

 

 

2015 Bottle poured into a Founders Brewing Co snifter

A: Pours basically black with a frothy cocoa brown head that settles to a light layer and leaves a little nice lacing.

S: Roasty, earthy, a little char, dark chocolate, coffee, molasses, burnt sugar, slight umami notes, and faint hints of dark fruit.

T: Roasted malt, dark chocolate, black coffee, a little char, earthy, molasses a touch of toffee, and faint dark fruit on the finish.

M: Full body, mild carbonation, creamy smooth.

O: Somehow I think this one went straight from the store to my cellar and has been there ever since, so it's about time I crack into it!
Total time capsule back to before every imperial stout was loaded up with adjuncts and it's aged beautifully. Another example of why Founders is quite possibly the best at brewing dark beers.