Shadow Magic
Silver City Brewery & Taproom

Poured at 56°; one finger of creamy khaki head with rocks; ok cap retention; blackish ruby see through body with very good clarity; heavy ring; soapy lace; thin legs. Faint roast malt nose. Not really much roast or bitterness in the taste; caramel malt with a bit of black licorice; Medium light body, smooth feel; no warmth from 9% abv; moderate minus carbonation. Overall a fairly average oatmeal stout, not much flavor including roast bitterness; kinda lame for a “foreign export” stout.

 

 

 

 

 

22oz bottle, served in a bulb snifter. Roasty malt aroma. Nicely layered flavors of toast, unsweetened chocolate. Begs to be warmed up. Swirling in my glass reveals an espresso flavor as well. I love Russian Imperial Stout, and this different take on Imperial Stout hits a lot of my favorite flavors. However, the one let down is that the mouthfeel is much thinner than I'd like. Even though carbonation is relatively low, it's too watery and non-viscous. If only it had a thicker mouthfeel it would be a perfect apres for working in the snow and shoveling.

a style often overlooked, the foreign export stout, this one stronger than many, but really smooth to drink and flavorful, nice to see a little more beer from these guys around the market lately, i think they do a nice job, and this is the first of their dark beers i can remember ever seeing or having. its got a tall frothing tan head on a high sheen black body, nice lace and retention, not overly viscous but plenty sturdy looking, well refined. smells and tastes like deep roast, a little middle malt sweetness, and some low acidity black coffee, although i do not believe there is actually coffee in the mix here, its all from the grain. its a little less bitter than it smells, not quite as dark tasting as it looks like it will be, hints of black licorice and even vanilla through it, more complex than many of these are. lightly english on the yeast, bready and kind of toasted to me, out of the way but not invisible. most shocking here is how well the alcohol is hidden, this has some beefy body sure, but its never boozy or warm even, smooth at temperature too, really impressive from a quality standpoint. nice to see a big stout on a draft menu without being packed with all sorts of adjuncts, seems like these are a rare breed now. very pleased with this, recommended. perfect february sipper.

On-tap in Meridian ID; served in a chalice.

A: Very dark body, opaque for the most part, with a minimal ring of off-khaki head.

S: Very roasty and malt-forward with notes of espresso, earthy bitterness, mild dark chocolate and coffee/espresso.

T: Follows the nose with roasted coffee, charred dark malt, espresso, bittersweet cocoa, and faint dark caramel.

MF: Strong medium-to-full body with some nice rich, velvety tones.

O: Very nice export stout; roasty, mildly bitter, rich and drying at the same time. Solid.