Zatek 2010
Buckeye Brewing Company

Other reviews mentioned the hotness and hoppiness so I cellared it for the last 5 years in my wine fridge at 53F. Wow, I'm glad that I did! Chocolate, dark fruits, sweet upfront, pleasantly bitter finish with some tobacco. Wish I had saved more bottles...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Special thanks to TheSevenDuffs for this!

Into snifter

A-Totally opaque black with a finger width tan head. Head drops to thin cap leaving sheets of lacing and alcohol.

S- Definite alcohol, hop and coffee with a subtle chocolate backing. Typical RIS with licorice and molasses with an odd placement of what my nose thinks is strawberries.

T- Big roastiness with coffee and chocolate, and quite an upfront hop bitterness that is hiding in the back there.

M- Medium to full bodied. Good carbonation and minimal alcohol warmth.

O- Very good RIS hoppier than normal but it seems to suit it well.

 

 

Poured from 22oz bottle. Thanks for this bottle Tyler (Tifore)!

A- Pours a dark brown color which is close to black. One and a half finger tan head shows medium retention. Some specks of lace coat the glass with each sip.

S- Roasted malts in the front with lingering darker fruit right behind that. Light bready chocoalte malts show the middle of the nose. Anise, alcohol heat, and light citrus hops in the very background.

T- Roasted malts in the front are dominated by a strong darker fruit (mainly fig). This starts to get a nice chocolate flavor toward the middle of the beer. Middle of the beer shows light chocoalte and toasted malts with the first signs of fusel alcohol that also is on the backend of the beer. Roasted malts come out more with a stronger coffee roast than anything else. I also get a small fig like flavor that sticks right before the fusel alcohol flavor comes in the final part of the beer.

M- Medium moutfeel. Carbonations is good for the style. Roasted malts, darker fruit, and hints of chocolate are left on the palate. Aftertaste is mostly alcohol (hot and boozy), darker fruit, and hints of coffee roast. Flavors were well balanced except for the alcohol with came out of nowhere with full force. Light metallic flavor left the only off flavor to the beer. Medium alcohol drying left on the palate.

O- This beer was a easy drinker once you started into it. The alcohol seemed to wane although that could be because I was getting used it to it. A nice try at the style and if it wasn't for the alcohol it would have been a lot better along with this grade. Would love to try this beer again when I get a chance to see if the alcohol is different in that bottle.

2010 Vintage.

Zatek has a body that is thick, dark and syrupy looking, almost like the beer itself would stick to my glass and not just the foam. The head is pretty good. It is dark brown colored and solid. The retention is pretty good, but the lacing is minimal.

Powerfully boozy with chocolate and good doses of both dark fruit and some anise.

This things tastes like rubbing alcohol is the main ingredient. Tons of heat and straight fusel alcohol flavors. Underneath that is some chocolate flavors that are dwarfed by a ton of dark fruit and a good bit of anise.

Thick and syrupy, Zatek would be good if it weren't so damn hot.

If you already bought this beer, throw it in the cellar and forget about it for awhile. It's a mess right now. If you aren't already sitting on some of these, I would leave them on shelf when you see them.

22 ounce bottle into snifter. Pours very dark brown color with a dense 1.5 finger tan head with very good retention that reduces to a lacing cap that leaves some nice lacing. Aromas of roasted malts, chocolate, citrus, dark fruits, oats, and some licorice. Taste of roasted malts, chocolate, and oat, with a decent amount of citrus bitterness on the finish. The bitterness lingers for a short time after the finish. The flavors are very well balanced between the sweetness and bitterness, and the overall main flavors also compliment each other nicely. A very creamy medium-full bodied mouthfeel here with medium carbonation. The alcohol content is hidden very well in this with only a slight warming after the finish. Overall, I am impressed by this offering from Buckeye, it is definitely a tasty RIS. I would like to have some more of this sometime, but it will probably be the next batch.

Received this bottle from drgonzo in the Black Booty BIF, thanks Paul!

Poured into a snifter.

Pours a jet black, with a thin, light mocha colored head that drops to a wisp very quickly. Some lacing expected from this one.

Aromas of deep roasted malts, coffee, alcohol, prunes, hints of anise. Citrus.

Interesting flavors, prune juice up front, dark roasted malts, strong dark coffee. Light cocoa and licorise. Some citrus, lemon zest. But the prune juice flavor dominates, like it was boiled down to a syrup, then caramelized. Toasty. Some alcohol burn is evident. Finish is medium with roasted malt, strong dark coffee, and the prune juice slowly fading. Signs of oxidation is such a "young" beer is not common, unless mishandled at the brewery.

Mouthfeel is sticky, medium, just shy of cloying. Alcohol burn. No real perception of carbonation, but without it, this would be full on prune juice cocktail.

Drinkability is questionable, I question whether I'll finish a bomber of prune juice by myself. Glad I had the chance to try it, not sure I'd buy another one.

Thanks to AwYeh for splitting this beer with me.

Appearance - Pours a rich chocolaty brown. Really good lacing that holds tight to the glass. A very porous head with air bubbles. Settles into a deep black.

Smell - Sweet chocolate and malts with slight coffee.

Taste - A surpassingly sour stout with hints of chocolate and coffee. A slightly above average stout with that sour twist as an added bonus. A very bitter finish that is more like an IPA. Sour.

Mouthfeel / Drinkability - Quite bitter for a stout. This was sour and different, but didn't quite adhere to my personal taste. I don't think I would purchase it in the future. It was worth trying once, however.

A - Dark brown with one finger of milk chocolate coloured head and some nice lacing.

S - Some distinct hops/bitterness up front to compliment a cofee, chocolate and licorice profile. Some citrus comes through (from the hops?), which is odd for an imperial stout.

T - A very hoppy stout - bitterness is noticeable up front. Some chocolate, licorice and a slightly bitter roasted malt flavour in the finish. There is a noticeable alcohol bite as well, but at times it gets easily confused with the noticeable hop profile. Overall, the typical stout flavours are not as prominent as I would expect but are still there.

M - Light to medium body. Seems a bit watery at times. Light body for the style. Moderate carbonation.

D - A good beer, but not a great one.

Poured into a pint glass. Pours into a dark black color with a tiny head that dissipates during the session.

Has a real hoppy smell and a hint of coffee, toffee and malts.

Tastes really good, goes down smooth. Has a nice toffee, malt, coffee taste with hint of chocolate and fruits.

Has a medium to full mouthfeel. This is a pretty good beverage.

Pours a deep next to black color. there is a half of an inch of caramel colored head that falls to a ring that leaves spots, and thin webs of lacing.

I smell roasted red meat, pine, walnut, molasses, soy sauce, sushi, and rubber. It is well balanced with a years aging.

The taste follows the nose with some added coco, and licorice notes. very smooth and balanced.

Medium bodied, with just enough carbonation. It has a warm with a peppery bite.

An all around good RIS...I could drink this till I pass out!

A very nice RIS. Pours a dense dark brown color with a medium size dark tan head. Head retention and lacing are good.A little light gets through at the edge of the glass when held to a light.

Smell is ok. Malty and some coffee. Not representative of the taste.

Tastes really good. Chocolate and coffe balanced nicelt within a rich malty stout.

Mouthfeel is the best part. This one is really smooth and hides the alcohol.

Drinkability is good. I could put down a few of these. A very nice RIS.

Poured from a 22 oz bottle featuring a yeti on the label into an oversized snifter. Pours a dark brown with a frothy tan head that reduces to a soapy lid. The head leaves a soapy residue along the sides as you swirl the glass.

Has a very hoppy smell, with plenty of pine and evergreen aromas. Some solvent notes, with alcohol and molasses.

Has a very full taste, with coffee, toffee, chocolate, and mild malt, with a healthy helping of piney hops that dry the tongue out.

Astringent, yet smooth, this beer leaves the tongue feeling quite dry. Full to medium bodied.

Complex and tasty, this beer is odd in that it smells like a real hoppy IPA, yet has a full stout taste. Will be picking this one up again.