Ghost Pepper Imperial Stout
ZwanzigZ

my first from these guys, never even heard of them before, but ive been more curious about chili beers lately and was stoked to try this one, i like the flavor of ghost peppers if the heat can be controlled, and i think this brings it pretty well. a little shine on it, black in color all the way, and with more head than expected, a half inch of mocha cream. the nose is spicy for sure, some licorice underneath and coffee character from the dark grain, nice roast and bitterness, and although there is a little bit of malt sweetness to this, its actually dry overall and they dont use residual sugar as a crutch to temper the heat, which im into. light smoke, molasses, and a little yeasty thing, not quite english but near, not neutral in a good way. some cocoa powder up front in the taste, some light citrus from the peppers, maybe not quite varietal specific but i taste chili pepper not just feel heat, although its hot too, warm on the tongue and in the throat, a sort of grilled depth to it, bitter chocolate at the end with the pepper, a little added heat from the alcohol but its not crazy or out of place, cocoa and smoke and an almost woodiness, bran and dark bread, burnt orange, soft fuller body with a luxurious smoothness. its hotter than it needs to be, i mean pepper nerds will adore it, which i consider myself, but this is a small volume thing and not because its an imperial, the pepper is hot no doubt, its not nuclear like ghost peppers sure can be, but it could be scaled back to increase how much of this mortal man wants to have. that said, i respect the effort, pull some cool complimentary umami notes out of the base beer, and think this is creative and fun overall, even if a little is plenty for me...

 

 

 

 

On tap.

A - Pitch black pour with a thick, creamy, roasted toffee colored head, very sticky lacing.

S - Roasted chocolate, some pepper sting in the nose, cocoa, light cream.

T - Roasted chocolate, toasted cocoa, some cream, pepper warmth throughout, darling chocolate bitterness is light to moderate, and ends with a lingering pepper heat that picks up intensity after the sip.

M - Full bodied, creamy, wet finish with the peppers coagulating saliva on the tongue.

O - This is a really great pepper stout with just the right amount heat without being over the top. Recommended if you enjoy spicy beers.