The Abyss 2019 Reserve Old World
Deschutes Brewery

Amazingly just recently found this at Specs in Austin. Bottled 2019/09/12
Pours thick inky black with large foamy 1+ finger brown head, great retention as it just sticks around forever, messy lacing, mild legs

Nose has a lot going on, a bit of licorice but tamed, baking spices, a little cardboardy waxy oxidation, dark chocolate, cocoa, vanilla, pepper, roasted malts and espresso, sweet syrup and molasses like, charred roasted malts, that cardboard character I thought was oxidation actually seems like the cherry bark, a bit of smoky wood and dusty oak, can't find sherry though

Taste brings again a ton of shifting flavors, right off the bat is spice with licorice and pepper, general baking spices, quickly into like a red wine and cherry character that molds into sherry, then more dusty wood and woody cherry bark, next into roasted malts, a little char and slight acrid roast, burnt coffee, even a bit smoky, espresso, vanilla spice, dark like very dark bitter chocolate, spicy hops mix with more licorice late, the molasses coming in as well with a smoky sweet syrupy character, sticky finish, med spicy hop and roasted slight acrid bitterness on the finish that lingers forever

Mouth is full bod, rich chewy thick, med carb, a bit of warming alcohol

Overall mixed on this one, I love the base beer and some of that does come through, but it was a bit of a mess with all the other characters in there just fighting back and forth to be the front flavor, def not something I would be able to drink often

Rated 1/25/2020 I know the name and still have a couple of different year bottles in my cellar, but don't really remember anything specific about this beer. It must have been really good from my rating, and I may have rated higher if it weren't for the licorice.

Imperial Stout brewed with black strap molasses, licorice, cherry bark, black pepper, and whole vanilla beans, aged in sherry barrels.
bottled on: 09/12/19

I wanted to do something special for my 500th beer review and I've been sitting on this one for a while. Here goes . . .

22-oz wax-sealed bottle into snifter

A - 2 fingers of deep tan over a body of black; gorgeous!

S - roast malt, sherry complexities, raisins, licorice, touch of wood, hint of dark chocolate, notes of coffee, faint vanilla, a bit smoky; quite pleasant

T - sweet molasses, conspicuous sherry, notes of vanilla, tart cherry, toasted malt, smokiness, touch of black licorice, wood/oak; deliciously complex

M - smooth medium body, moderate carbonation; creamy, rich, alcohol warmth

O - I have tried The Abyss from 2017 (aged in tequila barrels) and I rated that one a little more highly. Both, however, are top notch. Very enjoyable imperial stout and great for hours of sipping.

**
12/10/23

2019 bottle to snifter.

First sample of this at 4 years, but guessing this aged well compared to other Abyss I've had.

Pretty smooth.

Char, Vanilla, oak, licorice, plum, red wine.

**

Bought at Liquor Shed in Casper, bottled September 12th 2019.

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

The smell is roasted malt, vanilla, dark chocolate, sherry, fruity as in cherry which suggests the teeny weeny bit of tartness.

The taste is molasses, vanilla, roasted malt, cherry, with a light tartness, and a definite sign of oxidation that comes across to me as a sharpness, especially noticeable in the finish.

Mouthfeel is excellent.

Dang,I should have bought it when it first came out.

22oz bottle poured into a snifter

A- pours jet black in color with a one-finger creamy khaki head that has good retention

S- immediately notice that the sherry barrel enhances the black licorice note of the base beer, as well as giving a raisin note and plenty of wood. The base beer comes through on the undertone, providing aromas of charred malt, dark chocolate, black cherry & a hint of vanilla. There is a bit of an oxidized cardboard aroma at the end, I assume from the barrel

T- the oxidized note comes through much more on taste; as it is immediately noticeable. Notes of raisin and dark cherry emerge, followed by black licorice, old wood & molasses. The finish is strong sherry barrel that continues into the linger

M- medium body with moderate carbonation leads to a creamy mouthfeel that continues into a silky warming finish

O- probably my least favorite Abyss barrel treatment, I have to believe that the oxidization note is form the barrel, as I've had 7+ year old Abyss before and it was outstanding

Draft at CopenRoss. Dark black pour, patchy beige head, rings of lacing. Aroma of chocolate, licorice, grapes, booze. Chocolaty, sweet, grapes taste, mild alcohol burn, thick, full. Chocolate and grape jelly

 

 

The Abyss 2019 Reserve Old World from Deschutes. Picked up at Franklin Beer, Franklin, Pa. $ 15.00 (Including tax)/22 oz capped and waxed bottle ($ 0.682/oz) on 17/12/21. On room temperature shelf at store, stored at 37 degrees at home. Reviewed 10/07/22. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on end of label “BOTTLED ON 09/12/19”. Served at 53.4 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King Snifter. Final temperature 58.6 degrees.
Appearance – 4.25
First pour – Deep Brown (SRM 30), nearly opaque.
Body – Deep Brown (SRM 30), opaque. When rear-lite, opaque with slight red-amber light penetration at the edges. Light precipitate coats the inside of the glass.
Head – Large (Maximum 5.7 cm, aggressive center pour), initially chocolate but quickly fading to goldenrod, high-density but quickly opening, average retention, diminishing to a 0.5 to 1.0 cm crown and a rocky heaped island. Head retraction leaves behind about 20 tiny islands of foam.
Lacing – Excellent! Irregular sheet of near-microscopic bubbles clings to the glass for three to four cm above the liquid level, see also above.
Aroma – 4.25 – Strong aroma of chocolate malt. No hops, no yeast.
Flavor – 4 – Slightly bitter with a vinous hint of the sherry barrels, a little roasted malt. Extremely weak licorice ghosts by. Black strap molasses? Sorry, can’t taste it. No ethanol (10.8 % according to BA, NOT as marked on label) aroma or taste. Weak gastric warming. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 4 – Medium body, creamy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4.25 Excellent appearance and very attractive lacing. Nose draws me in. Flavor is better than expected – minimal sherry but well-blended into a delicious mélange. No vanilla (My taste bud deficiency) and a bit of licorice. If my local still has any, I’ll pick up a couple more bottles.

Big fluffy tan head, healthy sticky lacing. Smell is sweet, boozy. The molasses, cherry, and licorice present front and center with the sherry barrel. Light vanilla and toasted malt form the undercurrent. Vanilla, molasses, and cherry are most prevalent on taste, booziness of the sherry is pretty strong too. A bit of astringent metallic characteristic on both. Medium bodied, booze is subtle for the ABV, clean finish, not thick, sticky, or oily.

I love this. Chalky, bitter, and so much less vine ous than normal abyss. The pour was magnificent. Smell great, taste exemplary. Fe stellar. Overall its everything I want abyss to but gets fucked up with the wine barrel aging. Don't get me wrong, this is still fuckerered with red wine but its 1/10 of the bastardization normally abyss undergoes.

 

 

most of this aged in sherry casks, pretty cool to find on tap, and no surprise it has aged quite well. some sweetness and some funk in the nose, old wood more than anything wild or turning, mature as can be without oxidation, complex on the grain side to my senses too, even before the sherry. notes of port and cognac too though, some of the molasses richness of the original as well, licorice root, black tea, and tobacco seems evident as well, great layering and just full of character. the sherry adds a lot, everything from a white wine layer to cola and sarsaparilla, chewed cigar, toffee, and shoe leather. the alcohol is pretty well hidden, the body is somewhat lesser than expected, and the finish is oddly fast. i think this is about perfectly aged, no fade but amazingly well integrated, some of the most robust sherry aspects are lost to the heaviness of the grain and the deep roast that still dominates, but the nuance here is amazing. smooth as velvet, really good stuff. seems like all the variants of this beer are special, i feel lucky to have found this one flowing from the tap, as good as i knew it would be!

 

 

I picked this up at my regular place and its been sitting in the fridge so long the bottled date had faded away entirely. I’ve never had the original but I enjoyed this quite a bit. Had a very unique, sharp taste for an imperial stout.

 

22 oz bottle, born on 9/12/19, poured into a snifter at 55 degrees F:
L - dark, dark chocolate with a soft hazelnut head that lingered
S - sherry, cherry bark, molasses
T - molasses, sherry, cherry bark, licorice
F - medium mouthfeel and carbonation
O - very complex and layered flavoring, wonderful beer