The Abyss 2018 Reserve
Deschutes Brewery

 

22 ounce bottle, bottled on 9/15/18 and opened on 3/30/24. Pours black with a small brown head. Smells of barrel, molasses, licorice, and roasted malt. The taste follows with port, oak, bourbon, molasses, licorice, roasted malt, and vanilla. Very low sweetness, high bitterness, high dryness, and no noticeable oxidation. Medium low body and low carbonation. Overall a unique and complex stout which has lots of bold bitter flavors and aged well.

Bought at Liquor Shed in Casper. Bottled on September 15th 2018.

It pours pitch black with a healthy head of tan foam, excellent lacing.

The smell is roasted malt, dark chocolate, Bourbon, vanilla, no hints of any oxidation.

The taste is roasted malt, Bourbon, dark chocolate, vanilla, a bit of fruity sweetness and oak. Aging brilliantly I do reckon with no oxidation. From sip to sip, I get definite notes of coffee. Quite warming after each swallow.

High end of medium bodied, carbonation is very satisfactory, this is brilliant.

22oz waxed bottle, only $5 on sale from the best swill shop in the world

Looks beautiful, the pour rivaled some of the best in the business; like a Guinness on steroids. Smells spicy, drinks heavy and woody, but extra smooth at 11%. Most of the booze is in the feel, the burn is imperceptible. Chocolate, toffee, dark fruit, licorice... all buried under the massive wood and alcohol and woody alcohol

It's okay, glad I got it pre-aged on clearance. Not as good a send-off beer as I'd thought - I'm quitting drinking for a while after tonight - Cheers

 

 

It’s not as interesting as I had hoped, but still a pretty good beer. The molasses flavor comes through, but the others seem to be lost. I expected a little more details to come out in the flavor. The bourbon barrel aging doesn’t stand out very much, but I can tell it was in a wine barrel. It seems like it really could have been an amazing beer if it had just a little more complexity to the smell and flavor. As is, it’s a pretty good beer.
Worth the price? Well, it’s retired now, so maybe it won’t matter. I think it’s worth a shot if you are curious. Now that I’ve had it, though, I think I’d likely pass on it next time for something else.

 

I had higher hopes for this. Still a good beer but not a 100. The cherry is pretty forward and kind of off putting. No bourbon barrel in taste or nose.

22 oz. Bomber
Black Wax/Capped
2018 Reserve
Bottled On: 9/15/18
ABV: 11.4%

Poured into my Sexual Chocolate teku glass showing a deep dark brown/black color. Complex, sophisticated and a thick/creamy one-finger plus tan head, which leaves some small islands/oil slicks and sticky lacing behind. Just a tad thin for a beer of this ABV but still a world-class offering.

 

 

Very carbonated and very light in body, not at all how I like my stouts. The carbonation is visible from the get go, with a thick, soda-like head that sits atop a dark, almost black pour. The vanilla and barrels are there in the nose, but only if you let it warm up a bit. Taste is underwhelming, faint notes of the molasses and oak, but they fade quickly thanks to the obnoxious carbonation. Sad I took a chance on this one, not worth the price ($16.99 at a local store) or my time.

 

 

22 oz. Bomber
Black Wax/Capped
2018 Reserve
Bottled On: 09/15/18
ABV: 11%

Poured into a Tree House glass a very nice dark brown/black color, very nice carbonation, with a very nice thick/creamy one-finger plus tan head, which leaves some small islands/oil slicks and some very nice sticky lacing behind. The nose is malty, roasty, licorice, vanilla, very nice chocolate/toffee, very nice dark fruit, with some very nice bourbon/wine/oak notes. The taste is absolutely delicious malty, nice sweetness, very nice touch of chocolate/toffee, licorice, dark fruits, very nice touch of bourbon/wine/oak, nice little roastyness. Full Body, ABV hidden very well, goes down very smoothly, with a slight dry finish. Overall, this is an exceptional brew. Glad to have found a bottle this year.

Imperial stout brewed with blackstrap molasses and licorice, dry spiced with cherry bark and vanilla bean, 50% aged in bourbon, wine, and new Oregon oak barrels... 11% abv, bottled 9/15/18...

Opaque black pour fills the glass with black-bodied beer under a dark foam head a fat finger high... Incredible aromatics preview an intense medley of flavors... Red wine fruit notes like currants and cherry, woody tannins of oak, herbal chickory and anise, sweet cocoa, dry coffee char, and silky vanilla... The flavors percolate and circulate to and fro - the sweetness never goes too far, a bitter drying effect quick to pull it in... the body is full and smooth, somehow taut but forgiving, and with a drying finish like a fine wine or spirit...

Delivers on all the ingredients, harmoniously blended into a very unique and elegant drink... This is one of the most complex, intriguing, and rewarding beers I've had, and I'd recommend it heartily - not sure how it'll age, but if you've got one now, pop the cap without hesitation...