Russian Ending
Winter Hill Brewing Company

 

Pours a two finger brown head that fades slowly and leaves a good lace. Black color, no highlights. Good carbonation and medium bodied. Chocolate & coffee nose, flavor follows bakers chocolate and roasted coffee. $4.15 for a 16oz can from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma.

 

 

From the 16 fl. oz. can with no date listed. Sampled on April 1, 2018.

It pours dark brown to about jet black with a burst of beige head that fades to a ring after a couple moments.

Big roasted malt and chocolate aromas on the nose but there is no alcohol given its 9.2% ABV to be found. Not much in the way of dark fruit. It's mostly chocolate and coffee. Low to no hop profile.

About a medium body yet smooth.

The sweet dark chocolate is alive in the taste and it tends to take things over. Roasted notes. A warming finish with little to no hop character in the flavor. Rich.

 

Oooh, new local brewery to try, and a RIS, excited.
Pours a mocha colored thicker creamy frothy 1.5 finger head that fades at a med pace, plenty of lacing, just about pitch black beer... that is a nice looking 9+% beer

Nose big black patent roasty malt, dark chocolate notes, fluffy nougat chocolate marshmallow, dark caramel, baker's chocolate cocoa cereal, touch of coffee roast and creamy oats

Taste starts very creamy, like lactose sugar creamy, some oats I think hard to tell behind the lactose flavoring, more black malts and roasted notes, some dark caramel, lots of coffee grounds and roasted coffee, some cocoa and dark chocolate, fluffy nougat marshmallow, some fruity notes later almost like a fruity coffee berry like bean, fair bitterness, dry finish with a touch of alcohol late, dry like fresh coffee grounds in my mouth gritty like.

Mouth is med to heavier bod, thicker creamy lactose sugar, a touch of alcohol late.

Overall started nice with a nice nose, but taste was loads of lactose like flavoring, fresh coffee grinds, and not much else, lost all the nice RIS characters the nose had, but at least alcohol was hidden fairly well. Ingredients say water, hops malt, and yeast, but I'd be surprised if there was not lactose nor coffee in this beer.

 

 

16 oz. can

Pours black with a frothy tan brown foam head. Smells like dark chocolate, dark coffee, molasses, caramel, toasted bready malts, charred brown sugar, toffee, dark fruit, grapes, plum, apple, berry, with floral earthy herbal grassy pine. Tastes like dark berries, dark chocolate, coffee, molasses, caramel, toasted bready malts, charred brown sugar, dark fruit, plums, grapes, apple, with floral earthy herbal grassy pine. Feels medium bodied, smooth with moderate carbonation. Overall a nice Russian imperial stout.

 

Drank on tap at Winter Hill Brewing Company, Somerville, MA
Served in a cervoise

Oily, pitch black appearance. Medium bodied. The liquid was topped by an immensely tight and creamy, saddle brown crown that slowly fell to a resilient cap of froth. A patchy wall of lacing coated much of the glass.

The aroma was really solid. Powdered cocoa notes came through strong. Semisweet. Some chocolate fudge as well. Subtle dry, yeasty notes were detectable but they dissipated as the beer warmed. Moderate amount of roast. Bit of espresso too.

The flavor profile was terrific and quite similar to the nose. Big dark chocolate notes up front. Quite fudgey. Roasty. Loads of espresso in the center. Dark fruit notes were apparent. There was a sweet, cordial-like quality as well. Port or Madeira came to mind. More roast on the back end and the finish. Touch of char-like bitterness.

The mouthfeel was fantastic. While the beer was merely medium bodied for the style, the liquid contained a super fine, frothy carbonation that turned super plush and creamy on the palate.

Russian Ending may not be the biggest or most complex Russian imperial stout out there, but it is remarkably tasty and smooth. I tried this beer and Darlin's IPA on my first visit to Winter Hill Brewing. Based on the the quality of both, I definitely plan on visiting again soon.

 

 

Near black color. Moderate head with good blanketing to streaking lace on the glass.

I get deeply roasted nuts for the smell. Very low chalkiness. Some alcohol.

Starts mild but the swallow through aftertaste represents the style well with mild berry, coffee beans, and alcohol warmth. Long aftertaste of burnt barley and coffee grounds. Solid body with a good carbonation. Perhaps their best offering of the day at the brew pub.