Big Poppa - Biggie S’mores Imperial Stout
Three Notch'd Brewing Co. (Craft Kitchen & Brewery)

 

Thanks to Ryan for this one!

A: Very dark black in color with a dark tan head, that quickly dissipates into a ring.

S: A big hit of chocolate with caramel, burnt marshmallow, and graham cracker. Smells very sweet and mouthwatering.

T: Wow that is a sugar blast! Cloying sweet with notes of marshmallow, coconut, and chocolate. Some caramel and brown sugar in there as well, there is a light coffee linger in the finish.

M: Thick. low carbonation, and like oil going down. I think a touch more carbonation would lift this up a bit.

O: A bit of a sugar bomb, but it works as a sweet treat.

 

There is a "BOTTLED ON." date but the stamp is smudged so only the 19 at the end comes out.

Appearance: The beer is black with a thick khaki head. The head has good retention and leaves good lacing. The foamy head has a dense meringue consistency. Excellent head formation and lacing.

Aroma: There are notes of burnt sugar, some chocolate, a touch of coffee, and roasted grains.

Taste: Up front there is a very strong taste of cinnamon. This is followed by some chocolate and a bit of a smokey flavor. Alcohol flavor starts to compound on the flavors as the beer is consumed. A palate cleanser is strongly recommended to to keep the flavors neutral.

Mouthfeel: It's thick, a bit sticky, with a bit of heat from what tastes like cinnamon. A bit of alcohol heat but nothing overpowering.

Overall: It's a good beer. It's worth picking one up to try it out. The label on the beer says "BIG POPPA BIGGIE SMORES IMPERIAL STOUT" and there does seem to be a lot of reminiscent characters of smores in this beer. It won't taste like a smores but it strongly hints at it. The brewery did a good job of delivering a smores experience in a bottle so my hat is off to them. The cinnamon character is much stronger than many of the other flavors so it can be overpowering. Also there seemed to be a lot of roasted grain in the beer, or something else, and it pushed a lot of that burnt carbon flavor on the back of the palate that just lingered. I'm interested to see if this beer matures or if the recipe changes in the future, so I would try it again. It is an interesting and worthwhile beer but it doesn't feel honed.

 

Deep deep brown, basically black with a healthy finger of foamy tan head. First aromas are bitter chocolate and sugar, maybe a bit of graham cracker extract?. Taste is very sweet, a little more than I expected. Taste is very boozy with semi-sweet chocolate, crackers and a sugary sweetness. Balance is decent and mouthfeel is full of cocoa powder. Overall, a good beer, but definitely a sipper with the sweetness. Thinking this would be a great addition to a vanilla shake

 

12 oz bottle dated December 2018 purchased at Whole Paycheck. Am I happy Biggie Smores is now available in 12 oz. 4 packs? Yes. Yes, I am. Let warm for a good while.

L: Dark black. 1.5F tan head with lots of lacing, good persistence, and a cap and ring.

S: Graham crackers, chocolate, dairy, and marshmallow, along with roasted malts. About what you would expect.

T: Lots of graham cracker, creamy marshmallow and maybe vanilla, chocolate and roastiness that lingers into a long finish. A little bit of alcohol heat. Not sure why they felt the need to crank up the ABV.

F: Pretty full-bodied, with a little bit of carbonation. Construction is pretty decent and it's mostly balanced (the bourbon-barrel version is superior in this regard).

O: It's fine, but I think the hike in ABV without the benefit of bourbon-barrel aging has not been helpful.

Pours nice n' dark with a two finger mocha head. Aroma of graham crackers and caramelized sugar. Marshmallow and graham cracker crust followed by dark -- almost burnt -- malt flavors. Some chocolate lingers, of course. There is a molasses char toward the finish. It's not overly present, but it's there and it does interfere a bit with the other flavors. Besides the subtle acrid note, this is really good. If that was cleaned up a bit, this would rival some of the best of the dessert-like imperial stouts so popular these days. I sound old. I am, and I remember Biggie. (Bonus points for the lyrics on the side of the bottle.)