XReserve 04-14 : Imperial Coffee Stout
Saucony Creek Brewing Company + Gastropub

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from bottle to glass. Nice initial dark head that faded after a few minutes. Also nice medium body. A bit bitter, not much sweetness and a pronounced alcohol current. If you like dark roasted coffee, you'll like this.

 

Beautiful black brew, with a thick mocha head holding excellent retention.

Coffee aroma right up front, with just a touch of cream and cocoa.

Flavor follows: coffee mingles perfectly with roasted barley, with just enough dark bitter chocolate to round it out, especially on the back half.

Thick, smooth, and very drinkable.

 

 

12 oz bottle into snifter at cells temp.

Pours a dark black with a thin tan, with a tiny reddish hue, head. Minimal lacing.
Lots of coffee with a bit of heat. A little bit of vanilla and touch of sweetness.
Very much the same as the nose, with a bit more heat. But not overpowering. Sweetness on the finish.
Medium mouth feel with good carnbination. Definitely a siper.

 

Very solid beer. Good carbonTion and a strong bold flavor. Rich and toasty, lots of coffee and toffee.

 

On tap at Jack Rose Saloon in DC. Poured a dark, opaque black, with a nice khaki head. Smell was coffee, roast, and bourbon. Taste followed, and was very enjoyable. Mouthfeel was slightly thinner than I'd like in a big stout. I would absolutely get it again, given the chance.

a lot of times big coffee stouts, especially ones with a lot of coffee character, rely on quite a bit of caramel sweetness to balance the bitterness and common acidity of the java. i like that fine, but i also appreciate beers like this that pack in a ton of coffee, but skip the acidity and dont require residual sugar to make it feel balanced and drinkable. not as thick as a lot of imperials, i feel good about that too, its a bold flavored and full bodied stout no doubt, but it doesnt coat the palate and cling to the teeth all day, i can move on from this pretty easily. deep dark roast on both the grain and the coffee beans, its comes together real nicely. this is my first beer from these guys, and its pretty impressive. it has an overall very comforting and warming vibe about it, like a hot cup of joe on a snowy winter morning. this beer was seemingly designed as a stand in for that, and if that was in fact the mission, i would call it a success. i liked their other beers quite well too, looks like they are onto something...

Dark brown with ruby edges. Decent roast on the nose. The flavor has more chocolate notes than coffee notes. Sweetness dominate over the roast profile on the finish.

 

 

Smells of pure rubbing alcohol and a little thin.