Nightmare Russian Imperial Stout
Big Horse Brew Pub / Horse Feathers & Co.

 

 

First had: on tap at their brewpub

Dark black, nightmarishly so (bwahaha), with just a small tan ringlet for a head. Aroma was surprisingly caramel-laden, grainy, with your basic notes of roast, coffee, and chocolate. Taste followed the nose for the most part: dark roasty malts, notes of coffee, cocoa, smoke, not as much caramel sweetness. as the aroma promised. Heavy-medium body, and pretty good overall.

Pitch black with garnet highlights. Small, foamy tan head with poor head retention.

Earthy and roasty with a touch of coffee. Not bad but nothing special.

Smooth, sweet malt with some light coffee and roast notes. For me this is a little muddy.

Medium full body with moderate carbonation. Fine.

A decent stout but lacking definition due to a sweet finish. If this was a touch drier it would probably work better.

Nightmare came out with zero bubbles, and left no lacing on the glass. No light penetrated the molasses brown-black color.

Dark roasted grains on the nose. Charred and smoky, even. A bit of earth and molasses sweetness.

Lots of smoke with the dark roasted malts upon tasting. Black coffee, moderate bitterness. This is not as sweet and not as hoppy as a typical RIS. Still, I didn't mind the different take on the style. Mouthfeel is a little thin for my expectation of an RIS.

After looking at my scores, they seem kind of low. I really didn't mind this worthy beer from a quality brewpub in the great little town of Hood River.

Solidly smoky, peaty, almost angrily potent, with a smokestack aroma and thready lace. Nightmare tastes Russian though the peat flavor suggests malts leftover from Big Horse’s Macstallion Scotch Ale. Believe me, it’s a pleasure to compare these two great ales.

Nightmare is a beer of muscular duration and minimal head. A bold, potent, full-bodied stout brewed without apology. Listed on the menuboard at 7.2% ABV.