Big Dumb Beer
Bombastic Brewing

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a very dark mahogany brown, appearing nearly opaque black in the glass with a half finger khaki head with great retention and nice lacing. Aroma of dark toasted malt, coffee, fudge, licorice and a touch of dates. Flavor follows with dark toasted malt with moderate char, licorice, drip coffee, dark chocolate and hits of dried dark fruit; licorice and coffee finish. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. Wow, this is an impressive production in that it has no adjuncts, but has so many dominant flavors. The licorice is as strong as Abyss, which has actual licorice in it and the coffee is a clear, authentic note. Great chocolate too. Flavorful and full bodied for a straightforward stout. Although there is a little boozy burn in the taste, it is remarkably smooth for the massive ABV. I'm really liking this one and I'm betting it's going to get better once the 15% kicks in. Bombastic is killing it with stouts, nice job.

 

 

 

great chocolate malt taste - smoot stout

 

 

 

This is a pretty simple tasting stout. Lots of roasted malts, chocolate primarily. I also found some sweet bread, coffee, and maybe a little licorice. Low bitterness, pleasantly sweet, with virtually non-existent heat. It's rare that I a stout with no barrel or adjunks. Simply delicious and a nice change of pace.

 

Solid black appearance
Has light carbonation with a just above average body. Has a slight thick, creamy, slick feel.
Aroma is espresso beans,roasted malt, black coffee. Has mild toast, leather,molasses and a very mild earthy bitter aroma.
Taste is black coffee, roasted malt and espresso beans. Some dark chocolate which adds to the initial harsh bitterness.. some toast,molasses,and some sweetness that comes in later.
Excellent but needs to warm up which reduced the bitterness and allowed some sweetness to come through.

 

A: The beer is jet black in color. It poured with a quarter finger high dense mocha colored head that died down but lightened up into a light tan head and never completely faded away.
S: Moderate aromas of dark, roasted malts are present in the nose along with hints of licorice.
T: The taste follows the smell but isn't as toasty and has more flavors of dark chocolate along with hints of coffee beans. There is moderate amount of bitterness.
M: It feels full-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer tastes like a hybrid between an Imperial Stout and a Russian Imperial Stout.

Serving type: can

This pours out a thick dark brown. Motor oil black. On an aggressive pour, it yields a decent two fingers of fluffy khaki foam. Bubbles rise rather slowly to the top. As if looking to climb out of a mire.

Nose is chocolate, cocoa powder, roasted malt, dark toast, molasses, cinnamon, mild fruit notes, and a touch of soy sauce. This smells like a huge stout but it is not in the same wheelhouse as what you would expect from your standard American Imperial.

Taste really brings this idea home. The chocolate and the dark toast hit straight away and the bitterness peaks right after. This is not a high hill though and tapers off relatively quickly and brings all of the flavors to the forefront again. The mild fruit notes on the nose disappear on the taste. There is a sweetness that builds but it is countered by the bitterness in the mid palate, never becoming overbearing. This is a well balanced stout.

Mouthfeel is fullbodied and thick, but not oily and heavy. There is a light smoothness that almost makes it feel airy. Like a heavily whipped milkshake. A wonderful mouthfeel. Lends itself well to the drinkability. For a 15% brew, the alcohol is almost unrecognizable on the finish. This is as smooth as beer gets.

What a great brew from Bombastic. Simple in practice, but very different in execution. Roasted wheat adding a nice roasty sweetness, oats adding smoothness, and the chocolate rye bringing the character. An excellent sipper and great to share and analyze with a drinking partner.

16oz can poured into my Jackie O's tulip.

A: Oily black pour sits completely opaque in the glass; initially I was impressed with the finger-plus mocha-colored head but it died and never revived.

S: Mellow roast character with a big brown bread component, must be the wheat; there is moderate amount of dark chocolate as well as some faint coffee and booze.

T: Rich, full flavors of brown bread, bordering on some molasses and mild brewers licorice and earthiness. Dark chocolate, present roastiness but minor bitterness, a bit warm and boozy, with a flash of sweetness on the finish thats reminiscent of vanilla, or possibly tobacco.

MF: Rich, velvety, full-bodied. Thick. This is a 15% abv beer (not 10.6 as listed here on BA), so its warm and mildly boozy but really not that bad for a brew this big.

O: Delicious; I really enjoy the malt character of this one and that wheat/oat addition takes the flavor profile in a little different direction that your normal roasted/charry/coffee/smoky big stout. Drinks well for 15%.

Draft at brewery. Thick black oil slick pour, ring of head. Mellow roasty malt aroma. Taste is chocolate, burnt toast, coffee. Velvety smooth. (October 6, 2018)