Liquid Vinyl
Arbor Brewing Company - Plymouth Taproom

Pours an effervescent Chesnut/mahogany with a thumb of tight mocha colored head. Average-ish head retention & very nice lacing

S: Roasty, vanilla, cocoa. Dark fruits once warm & plenty of cocoa powder

T: Follows the nose, dryness just little chicory up front. Hints of licorice, roastyness, dark chocolate, vanilla cream& dryness once this beer is warm, a little char as well. Finishes roasty with vanilla & chocolate notes, dryness, woody hops, a little bit of chicory & dried plums

MF: Medium/thick bodied, smooth carbonation, some warming sensation

This is a great take on the style, no gimmicks with great drinkability; no flaws at all

 

Amber on the pour then the ubiquitous yet pleasing deepest of browns in the glass. Small amount of head receding relatively quickly to a thin cap & ring. Some nice roasty notes on the nose, and what to me smells like hazelnuts.

Taste is right up my alley. Loads of roast & char with some accompanying bitterness at just the right level lead the way, with a few bakers chocolate and coffee flavors rounding things out on the back-end. Feel is slick and maybe just a tad thin.

Overall, this is excellent. I lean towards stouts with lots of deep roast vs. sweeter ones, and this is definitely the former. Great morning beer. Thanks @foundersasap!

Good head production and excellent retention.

Classic RIS nose: char, red grape, toast, caramel, molasses, licorice, leather, bark, Baker's chocolate, coffee. At first sniff, it's a touch harsh and imposing, but the depth really grows over time.

Coating, light-full body, with the thin but dark beige foam slowly sliding down the glass matching the way the beer slowly washes over your palate. Very lightly dry on the back-end, contributing to an overall long finish.

Flavors of bitter chocolate, moderate char, red grape, molasses, caramel, bark, and a bit of earthy coffee. Very low but present sweetness; most of the bitterness is driven by the roasted malt, although there is a hint of bark and pine hop presence. Slightly burnt toast finish, along with molasses.

 

 

 

12 oz can, poured into Tallgrass Globe Snifter
Sent from my good trade buddy superspak

Very thick pour, with some inky blackness and syrup-like consistency, deep chasm in the glass, with a tall pale beige head of 2 fingers, receding to 1 eventually leaving tons of connected webbing of lace.

This beer actually smells like a gatefold vinyl record. I think the universe just turned on its ear. Some dark char and vinyl/plastic, slight dark cacao, leather, cigar papers, and tobacco.

Flavor brings heavy dark fruits, ash, tobacco, leather, piney/herbal hop, toasted pumpernickel, dried figs. oak, slight dark chocolate sweetness (and that's to say mild sweetness due to the nature of dark chocolate), charcoal, more dark fruits, more leather, and more ash.

Feel is a little thinner than expected and probably my biggest gripe of the beer. It has a heavy body but on the lighter side of what I'd call thick. Resinous and sticky though, I'll give it that, with heavy smoke and char, with roast and moderate alcohol heat equaling dryness at the end.

Overall, a kick ass Russian Impy that will indeed kick YOUR ass. Well done. I like this better t han Old Raspy and about as good as Expedition.

 

 

 

 

12 ounce can into snifter, canned in 11/2018. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky khaki head with amazing retention, that reduces to a large cap that lasts. Thick soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a light amount of streaming carbonation. Amazing appearance. Aromas of huge dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, fig, date, licorice, roasted nuts, and toasted dark bread; with lighter notes of smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/black/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate earthy hop notes; with big strength. Taste of huge dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, fig, date, licorice, roasted nuts, and toasted dark bread; with lighter notes of smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate pine, herbal, grassy, peppery hops; and roast/charcoal bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, toffee, dark fruit, licorice, roasted nuts, toasted dark bread, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; with a great hop/char bitter/sweet balance; and no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering hop/char bitterness. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, fairly sticky/chalky, and lightly resinous balanced mouthfeel that is great. Minimal warming alcohol for 10%. Overall this is a fantastic Russian imperial stout! All around outstanding complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/black/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV with the modestly bitter/charred/drying finish. Not overly bitter/drying on hops/char. Amazing balance of super rich malt and fruity yeast; with nice earthy hop presence against sweetness. A highly enjoyable offering, and spot on style example. Very classic tasting all around.

 

I never got into Russian Imperial stouts because I never thought they were particularly drinkable. As a dessert? I can accept that. Usually, they're too sweet.

Then again, that's hard to avoid when you're sporting double (10%!!) the alcohol of a mortal beer. But, it doesn't mean I have to like it.

That's what I was going to say about Liquid Vinyl: it's complex fruitiness is undone by the fact that it's too sweet for me to have more than a sip or two at a time. That lasted until I set it aside, to give myself a break. But, in letting it warm up a bit, I locked its true potential: this baby is downright tasty at 55–60°F. The sweetness actually melts away, replaced by a nice woody bitterness.

Don't get me wrong: no matter what you do, you can't drink this and do anything else. Don't try to eat anything with it: it will mess up the flavor. And, don't drink it while doing something important. Have a seat, relax, and take your time enjoying it. And, while you're taking your time, let it warm up a bit in the glass first. It'll be worth the wait.