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The City Never Sleeps
Gigantic Brewing Company
- From:
- Gigantic Brewing Company
- Oregon, United States
- Style:
- Saison
- ABV:
- 7.6%
- Score:
- 87
- Avg:
- 3.87 | pDev: 12.4%
- Reviews:
- 27
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Jun 05, 2019
- Added:
- Jun 27, 2012
- Wants:
- 11
- Gots:
- 7
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by laituegonflable:
Reviewed by laituegonflable from Australia
3.68/5 rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
3.68/5 rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Pours a dark brown colour, seems to have a reddish tinge to it, with cream-beige foamy head, sunk to a film of bubbles but nice clingy lace. Good.
Smells fairly roasty and dark, but wild with a slight sour edge. Hint of espresso, licorice and chocolate, with a dark cherry touch and maybe a hint of orange peel. Pleasant, but could use a bit more oomph to drive it home.
Taste is also dark: a little bit spicier with a touch of black pepper, star anise, all riding on a bitter chocolate wave. Fairly mild by the end with a touch of cola, nutmeg maybe, overall a little on the English, subtly bitter side. But pleasant, and pretty well-balanced, with sweet and spice in harmony.
Bit fizzy in the mouth, leaves a bit prickly and dry. Body is a bit vapid, so the bubbles are left unharnessed and they run wild.
Fairly straightforward, but nice spice notes keep me interesting.
Aug 04, 2014Smells fairly roasty and dark, but wild with a slight sour edge. Hint of espresso, licorice and chocolate, with a dark cherry touch and maybe a hint of orange peel. Pleasant, but could use a bit more oomph to drive it home.
Taste is also dark: a little bit spicier with a touch of black pepper, star anise, all riding on a bitter chocolate wave. Fairly mild by the end with a touch of cola, nutmeg maybe, overall a little on the English, subtly bitter side. But pleasant, and pretty well-balanced, with sweet and spice in harmony.
Bit fizzy in the mouth, leaves a bit prickly and dry. Body is a bit vapid, so the bubbles are left unharnessed and they run wild.
Fairly straightforward, but nice spice notes keep me interesting.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by zeff80 from Missouri
3.94/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.94/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
22oz bottle. Poured an opaque, jet black color with a small tan head of foam. It smelled of spices, wheat, yeast and bread crust. Sweet caramel and roasted malt taste with a spicy bite.
Apr 25, 2018Reviewed by puck1225 from Texas
4.29/5 rDev +10.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.29/5 rDev +10.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
A somewhat underrated beer. It was poured from a bomber into a tulip glass. Rich dark brown with a reddish beige head and great lacing. A chocolate coffee smell. The earthy, smokey flavors remind you of a nice Porter, mingled with a some saison funk. Smooth as silk feel - very nice beer!
Oct 18, 2017Reviewed by dave_ackbar from Hawaii
4.94/5 rDev +27.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
4.94/5 rDev +27.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Tried a 4oz. Sample of this the other night along with a few other darks. I immediately ordered 16 more ounces of this.
The color is a rich brown with a reddish hue.
The smell was hard to describe, but amazing.
Taste was smooth, with a dry finish.
I had this on tap, but purchased two 22oz bottles on my way out.
Best beer I've had in 2017
Aug 07, 2017The color is a rich brown with a reddish hue.
The smell was hard to describe, but amazing.
Taste was smooth, with a dry finish.
I had this on tap, but purchased two 22oz bottles on my way out.
Best beer I've had in 2017
Reviewed by Wasatch from Colorado
4.12/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.12/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
22 oz. Bomber
Poured into a chalice a pretty nice black color, pretty nice carbonation, with a pretty nice thick/creamy/foamy one-finger light tan head, which leaves some nice sticky lacing behind. The nose is malty, yeasty, with some light chocolate/toffee/licorice, very light banana/coriander. The taste is malty, yeasty, with some light chocolate/toffee/licorice. Nice little banana/coriander/spice note. Medium body, ABV hidden very well, nice little dry/bitter finish. Overall, a pretty tasty brew, nice to see it back around here.
Jul 04, 2017Poured into a chalice a pretty nice black color, pretty nice carbonation, with a pretty nice thick/creamy/foamy one-finger light tan head, which leaves some nice sticky lacing behind. The nose is malty, yeasty, with some light chocolate/toffee/licorice, very light banana/coriander. The taste is malty, yeasty, with some light chocolate/toffee/licorice. Nice little banana/coriander/spice note. Medium body, ABV hidden very well, nice little dry/bitter finish. Overall, a pretty tasty brew, nice to see it back around here.
Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina
4.06/5 rDev +4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
4.06/5 rDev +4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Appearance: The Saison yeast does its thing here, producing a full three fingers of sticky beige foam that impressively laces the tulip; underneath, the liquid looks like a stout, with a fudge brown color
Smell: Rustic and bready, with a toasted brown bread character; cocoa powder and a hint of licorice
Taste: Somewhat roasty, with cocoa powder and toasted brown bread, with a hint of licorice; through the middle, the Saison yeast adds a slightly phenolic tone, bringing a touch of white pepper; the finish brings a blend of the flavor progression
Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate to high carbonation
Overall: Glad to get a bottle from the re-release of this one -off as I missed it the first time around; an interesting beer that I wish had a bit more Saison character; still, I enjoyed it
May 07, 2017Smell: Rustic and bready, with a toasted brown bread character; cocoa powder and a hint of licorice
Taste: Somewhat roasty, with cocoa powder and toasted brown bread, with a hint of licorice; through the middle, the Saison yeast adds a slightly phenolic tone, bringing a touch of white pepper; the finish brings a blend of the flavor progression
Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate to high carbonation
Overall: Glad to get a bottle from the re-release of this one -off as I missed it the first time around; an interesting beer that I wish had a bit more Saison character; still, I enjoyed it
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)
3.87/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.87/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
22oz bottle - an 'Imperial Black Saison', which is not a new thing to me, but rare enough that I'm mildly trepidatious about it.
This beer pours a fairly solid black hole, with very subtle orange cola basal edges, and three fingers of puffy, rocky, and chunky beige head, which leaves some decent tiered mitochondrial lace around the glass as it slowly but surely abates.
It smells of roasted wheaten malt, a mildly estery yeastiness, bittersweet cocoa powder, some lesser caramel/toffee sweetness, ethereal anise and mixed peppercorn spice, and very faint earthy, leafy, and dead floral green hop bitters. The taste is bready and doughy caramel malt, a lesser edgy wheatiness, kind of phenolic yeast, muddled citrus/pome fruity notes, medium-dark chocolate, still hard to pin down spices (maybe some clove, maybe some black pepper dust), and more rather weak leafy, weedy, and gently perfumed floral verdant hoppiness.
The carbonation is fairly laid-back in its insouciant-seeming frothiness, the body an adequate medium weight, and mostly smooth, but for a bit of yeasty interference making unwelcome waves here. It finishes off-dry, in a yeasty, charred, and fruity malt manner.
Overall, this is a pleasant enough blackened Saison, with a well-integrated 'Imperial' wowee sauce measure. Easy to put back, even if it does touch on a number of my least favourite parts of the beer spectrum - so that's really saying something, yeah?
Apr 29, 2017This beer pours a fairly solid black hole, with very subtle orange cola basal edges, and three fingers of puffy, rocky, and chunky beige head, which leaves some decent tiered mitochondrial lace around the glass as it slowly but surely abates.
It smells of roasted wheaten malt, a mildly estery yeastiness, bittersweet cocoa powder, some lesser caramel/toffee sweetness, ethereal anise and mixed peppercorn spice, and very faint earthy, leafy, and dead floral green hop bitters. The taste is bready and doughy caramel malt, a lesser edgy wheatiness, kind of phenolic yeast, muddled citrus/pome fruity notes, medium-dark chocolate, still hard to pin down spices (maybe some clove, maybe some black pepper dust), and more rather weak leafy, weedy, and gently perfumed floral verdant hoppiness.
The carbonation is fairly laid-back in its insouciant-seeming frothiness, the body an adequate medium weight, and mostly smooth, but for a bit of yeasty interference making unwelcome waves here. It finishes off-dry, in a yeasty, charred, and fruity malt manner.
Overall, this is a pleasant enough blackened Saison, with a well-integrated 'Imperial' wowee sauce measure. Easy to put back, even if it does touch on a number of my least favourite parts of the beer spectrum - so that's really saying something, yeah?
Reviewed by ygtbsm94 from Utah
3.42/5 rDev -11.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.42/5 rDev -11.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
More of a porter/brown than a Saison! Molasses, plums, toasted barley, chocolate Taste is brown sugar, cherries, plums, coffee, vanilla, cocoa, herbal.
Jan 30, 2017Reviewed by BeerAdvocate from Finland
3.9/5 rDev +0.8%
3.9/5 rDev +0.8%
From BeerAdvocate magazine Issue #69 (October 2012):
Blasphemy for some, creative dark juice for others, this “Imperial Black Saison” defies style. It’s all over the place and barely resembles a Saison. Style banter aside, this is a fun and flavor-packed beer that’s layered with interesting characters that might not normally come to play together.
STYLE: Imperial Black Saison
ABV: 7.6%
AVAILABILITY: Year-round
LOOK: Black, opaque, creamy, foamy, coffee colored head
SMELL: Citric, phenolic, fruity, esters, musty, roasty, coffee
TASTE: Smooth, creamy, semi-viscous, chewy, malty, blackstrap molasses, brown sugar, coffee, cola, citric snap, fruity, vegetal, earthy, dry
Oct 29, 2014Blasphemy for some, creative dark juice for others, this “Imperial Black Saison” defies style. It’s all over the place and barely resembles a Saison. Style banter aside, this is a fun and flavor-packed beer that’s layered with interesting characters that might not normally come to play together.
STYLE: Imperial Black Saison
ABV: 7.6%
AVAILABILITY: Year-round
LOOK: Black, opaque, creamy, foamy, coffee colored head
SMELL: Citric, phenolic, fruity, esters, musty, roasty, coffee
TASTE: Smooth, creamy, semi-viscous, chewy, malty, blackstrap molasses, brown sugar, coffee, cola, citric snap, fruity, vegetal, earthy, dry
The City Never Sleeps from Gigantic Brewing Company
Beer rating:
87 out of
100 with
76 ratings
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