From The Wreckage
Wandering Soul Beer

 

 

Canned 2020/12/30
Pours a smaller foamy tan head with med retention, fair lacing, very dark basically black color

Nose brings roast, roasted malts and a bit of coffee, anise and spice, little vanilla, coffee and cream, spicy earthy hops

Taste brings more spice, plenty of baking spices, some anise, cinnamon like, lots of roast but not burnt, roasted coffee, little vanilla spice, then big hops, med bitterness, spicy and a bit earthy, drier mild sticky finish, bit of warming alcohol

Mouth is fuller bod, med to lighter foamy carb, light warming alcohol

Overall not bad, not quite my style of imperial stout but it's within guidelines, quite spicy all around

 

 

 

 

 

Fantastic, straight up, creamy and delicious!

 

Wandering Soul has done some pretty great IPAs and some more experimental stuff (their Belgian-style strong pale with mango that was not amazing but was at least inspired, and their Past Life Vienna Lager which was superbly crafted), and now they turn to the idea of a Winter seasonal with a big, bruisin' imperial stout. No gimmicks, no flavors, no trends... this is just a strong dark American ale of the roastiest, toastiest variety, and I couldn't be happier to have it in my glass!

Awesome pour here... tumbles out of the can as a superbly-dark and mean (yet somehow quite clear) deep brown beer building up with a sizable head of off-khaki/beige foam that settles after a few minutes to a thin ring while leaving behind super solid lacing. Drippy patterns emerge in this lace, and there are some solid legs and retention here, to boot. Slightly hazy surface with good stability. Very nice stuff. Dense and rich looking.

The nose is ashen malts, roasted grains, light spice, and an almost Belgian-like yeast temperament. Slight dark fruit, anise, and caramel with dry, dusty cocoa powder underlying and punctuating my initial experience with the beer. Some piney hops and resin here; chalky and kinda muddled but they're definitely there. I mean, the brewery lists this at freakin' 80 IBUs, so I know this is no slouch in the bitterness department right from the outset. Blackened coffee beans and toffee squares... I'm into it. Let's dig in.

First few sips are soft and rounded with big flavors of chocolate and coffee plus some spice and a rather dense hoppiness. Some pine and dark fruit combined with spruce and earthy undertones. Tobacco aspects and an unforeseen dollop of sweet cream layer atop chocolate-y malt and some coffee ground driven bitterness toward the finish. Rich and decadent with a slight bit more sweetness than roastiness, this is certainly differing a bit from my expectations, but I'm finding it quite rewarding to sip at regardless.

Feel is definitely rich and chewy, almost kinda creamy somehow, with a heavy body and moderate carbonation (leaning a little toward the lower end, and I could stand for a touch more, however). It's unusual to find bold, unflavored imperial stouts these days, and I was happy to pick this one up, especially considering I've mostly been drinking additive-drive/flavored stouts recently. This is reminding me of the good ol' days of stuff like Clown Shoes Vampire Slayer/Undead Party Crasher, Ten Fidy, and the like. Recommended. Excited to see how this brewery develops further.

From The Wreckage - seems like an appropriate name for a beer coming out in late 2019 - I love it! Very attractive appearance with a cola-colored hue and a mountainous, tan frothy head floating on top. Beautiful. I find the carbonation level to be just right for the ABV and style as well.

The aroma is a luxurious blend so dizzyingly decadent, that at first it is impossible to describe. You really need to experience this for yourself to see what I mean. I am picking up malted milk candy, caramels, milk chocolate, sweet cream, vanilla bean, alpine scents, and I can definitely pick up a bit of resinous hop in there too! Step aside, Wonka!

Now for the taste... WOW.. every one of the aroma elements is present... and more! This is a very flavorful beer! I'm getting an additional black cherry type of aspect, not so different than say, Ten Fidy with this. It's very nice and makes the beer akin to a sweet treat or a dessert beer. I can taste a pleasant bitterness of citrus origin in the finish - the hops are coming through here.

Overall the varied flavors mix very well and unlike many others in the style, there is hardly any alcohol heat, to my great surprise. Not boozy at all. How brewers accomplish this is beyond me. The mouthfeel is quite smooth. I'm definitely going to get more of this for #stoutseason! I bet this would be a hit at holiday parties, its really accessible.

Pint can, dated yesterday. Very dark, a little ruby around the edges if held to a light. Filmy head, minimal carbonation. Smell is sweet and roasty. Taste is very sweet malt, lightly roasted. Label says 11% ABV, 80 IBU. I don't really pick up on the hops that much, overwhelmed by the sweet malts. Also, the brewery Instagram says this first batch might be closer to 10% ABV. Much of the print on the label is extremely hard to read because it is dark grey silver fine print on a black background; nice art but the fine print should have been white. Feel is good, medium body but under carbonated. Overall, this is a very good American Imperial Stout, but is a little too sweet and I'm not sure what is going on with the hops since they aren't that noticeable. Room for improvement to be truly excellent.