Opium Cake
8 Wired Brewing Co.

A- Love the black can....very trendy! The appearance of the brew is midnight black (think a coffee bean brown), and the head, while available to look at, is a dark toffee coloration.....retention is pretty poor unfortunately. Rather than any sort of lacing around the inside of the glass, I get a dark looking oily film that coats it well.

S- Definitely getting aromas of rummy raisin, dark chocolate liqueur, slight citrus from the orange, sweetbread, and likely from the poppy seeds, some sort of light tartness. There are also nuances of various baking spices, like cinnamon, and perhaps some clove/nutmeg, and a generalized booziness about! Overall this has all of the makings of a sweet and super rich dessert stout.

T- Wow! The initial flavors are of heavily dark chocolate....Im thinking about 85% or better, sweetened with fresh vanilla beans....just lovely! There are underlying notes of fresh cocoa powder, raisins, burnt toffee, a hint of Terrys dark chocolate orange, lactose, sweet cream bread, biscuit like yeast and a finish that again, just hits my palate with a slight tartness....is this the poppy seed? The flavors linger quite well, well beyond the taste, and surprisingly, the alcohol, while warming in my belly, isn't overly strong on the palate.

M/O- This is a heavy brew, with an almost syrup like texture. The carbonation is super smooth, and the flavors slowly coat the palate, becoming more intense with each taste. The alcohol is well hidden for such a high test beer, and surprisingly, I find this beer quite drinkable, although i wouldn't necessarily want more than one in a sitting before moving on. As I burp up the fizz, I get flavors of the oranges used...quite nice! Works well on its own after having a nice bowl of chili on a brisk evening, as I am doing during this review!

 

Pours dark black with a dark creme colored two finger head. Aroma is oranges, vanilla and delicately, raisins. Just the aroma itself is quite pleasant. Taste is oranges and little else, with perhaps a roasted malt hint at the end. In between sips, I sense a tiny bit of vanilla here or there. A nice brew and worthy of sampling, as it is rare to find a good, balanced orange taste in beer.

 

L: Motor oil jet black poured from a 12oz can into a sniffer - heavy head risen. About 2-3 fingers length to be about. No signs of lacing left behind as it dissolves.
S: Smells syrupy! Roasty chocolate aromas lingering with some fruit aromas similar to of the citrus from an orange. Getting some vanilla in here too.
T: Big and sweet!! Definitely getting a dark chocolate taste followed by a smooth vanilla oakiness to the taste. You can definitely taste the raisins with the orange citrus lingering in there. Picking up on some lactose and molasses in here as well.
F: Heavy bodied, thick, syrupy, easy to drink - alcohol hides very well.
O: This was a great beer! I really loved the complexity of this beer and can say I haven't tried many imperial stouts like this one. If you haven't had this it's definitely worth the try.

 

 

 

Black as oil. Nose is like a chocolate cake. Taste is also like a dark chocolate cake with booze! Nice stout.

Pours a very dark color with a slight tan head and lacing
Aroma has poppy seeds, lactose, oranges, vanilla, raisins and chocolate hints
The taste follows the nose with a poppy seeds, lactose, vanilla, raisins and chocolate flavor
A medium bodied well carbonated beer
A great Imperial Stout

Doing their best to sabotage those random drug tests, 8 Wired and Pinta brewers team up for a citrus, vanilla, raisin and poppy seed Imperial Milk Stout.

Jet black and viscous in its pour, the frothy mocha cap that builds upon the rim hosts a rich and robust perfume of roast, smoke, cocoa, spice and burnt cream. Sweet and savory on the early palate, the stout slathers the tastebuds with molasses, heavy cream and a richer nougat-like chocolaty sweetness.

With the sweetness showing a stubborn side, the lasting malts, milk sugars and sweet solids are met with a rising spice of peppery poppy seed that seems rye-like. Woodsy with a smoky char to meet the taste of dark chocolate, espresso and roasted walnut which extends into a long late palate of curaçao spice and a sprucy bitterness.

Full bodied and off-cloying, the strong and milky stout leaves impressions of malted milk candies to go along with a strong alcohol spice and a sharp botanical bitterness to close. A long and savory aftertaste carries a woodsy char with nearly bourbon-like intensity.

reamy stout slightly strong get many different tastes in every sip

12oz can. Poured out an opaque, jet-black color with a small, light brown head of bubbly foam. It left sticky lace on the glass. It smelled of vanilla, spices, chocolate and toffee. Sweet chocolate and toffee taste with spices, vanilla and hints of coffee.

A - Pours the classic thick dark black with an oily shine. The head is Beige and retains very well
S - Oh yes ! Heaps of sweet vanilla with a slight roasted background.
T - Well if you like Vanilla, coconut milky stouts then this is for you. The finish is toffee and caramel. Very little roast or molasses.
M- This is very full body and low carbonation. It is very viscous indeed.
O - Well this is a Monster stout. And for those of you who like the Vanilla in your stouts then this will do you very nicely.
Very impressed with this beer.