Black Ops
Salopian Brewing Company Ltd

Beer Geek Stats
From:
Salopian Brewing Company Ltd
 
England, United Kingdom
Style:
Russian Imperial Stout
ABV:
7.5%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
4.11 | pDev: 7.06%
Reviews:
3
Ratings:
6
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 18, 2014
Added:
Feb 12, 2011
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Recent ratings and reviews.
Photo of StJamesGate
Reviewed by StJamesGate from New York

4.11/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours an unctuous purple-black with stiff leather-brown head that pits.
Big lemon balm, sweet roast, and prickly green hop spice on the nose - alluring.
Butter on black rye, an ashy bite, big aggressively tart + musty Sorachi lemon hop hit, some waxy peel and a twinkle of fizzing tangerine candy.
Lime hard candy ending and mercilessly bitter pith linger.
Medium, oily, plenty of chew.

Sorachi Ace, Brewers Gold, Amarillo

I don't know how this is in as an RIS - if this isn't a Black IPA, then there's no such thing as the style. Wave upon wave of unforgiving hop citrus nearly hides all the stout notes, and this isn't a limp beer underneath. Amarillo doesn't get much of a look in here, but credit due for making me enjoy a hop I usually hate.

Formidable.
Feb 18, 2014
Photo of BlackHaddock
Reviewed by BlackHaddock from England

3.9/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
330ml Bottle @ home on 12th feb 2014.

I couldn't decide what to pour it into, so chose a Chimay chalice in the end: it looked fine. Rich, deep foaming head of lovely tanned, creamy bubbles, sat on top of a jet black body, the creamy topping stayed around for the whole drink, shrinking in size, but staying the distance intact.

Intense bitter hop aroma somehow seeps through the creamy head, coffee smells within a malty base come later as the beer warms a little.

The taste is a coffee/chocolate infused bitter hop monster: dark Bourneville chocolate soaked in over roasted malts, deep and malty, yet with an overriding hop bitterness.

The huge blend of flavours almost hide the alcohol content, but not quiet.

Body is smooth and nearly creamy in nature, but it's more robust than that and the hop content gives some nice rough edges and a final bite.
Feb 14, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by joeponte from Rhode Island

Oct 03, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by pest from Ohio

Nov 17, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by enelson from Illinois

Nov 16, 2011
Photo of AgentMunky
Reviewed by AgentMunky from New York

3.9/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Served in a half-pint glass at the Bow Bar in Edinburgh.

A: Firm tan head. The body, seemingly jet-black, shows chestnut hues in direct light.

S: Sweet chocolatey malts with a roasted undertone. Coffee notes and trace alcohol. Good but not great.

T: Quite nice. Sweet and smooth. Chocolate. Rich malts. Roasted but not bitter towards the endtaste. The aftertaste is light and molasses-sweet without being sticky. Too thinly sweet for my tastes, and not quite balanced, but still a good effort. Black Ops was served room temperature, perhaps to its detriment.

M: A smooth beer struggling between thin and rich. The latter usually wins out.

D: Quite drinkable for the stile, but by no means the best imperial stout I've tried. Tentatively recommended.
Feb 12, 2011
Black Ops from Salopian Brewing Company Ltd
Beer rating: 4.11 out of 5 with 6 ratings