Ursus Spelaeus
Sound Brewery in Poulsbo, Washington, United States 🇺🇸
Stout - Imperial Regular|
Score
7.34
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7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Tap at Q-Brick. Shiny black with lace. Nose of blueberries, chocolate, a bit roasty; fruity and phenolic. Rather mild flavor (counldn’t believe it was 10%). Hides its alcohol well, but then again, doesn’t carry a 10% flavor either. Sweet and fruity, and too phenolic for me, with lots of cocoa. Not very imperial.
Tried
from Draft
on 17 Jan 2014
at 19:29
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 6
Sound’s Ursus Speleaus, 10% on tap at world beer & cafe Qbrick’s Strong Beer Event. This beer pours a pitch black with a light tan creamy head. The aroma is umami & overhelmingly licorice with light cacao powder notes. The taste is similar, this is the most licorice I’ve evr gotte in a beer. As it warms up more coffee notes come through. If you like black licorice you’ll love this beer!
Tried
from Draft
on 11 Jan 2014
at 05:07
7.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Draft - Roast malts, dark roast coffee and bitter chocolate. Jet black with a brown head. Big roasty, all the usual suspects with some liquorice. Oily and rich, a really nice stout.
Tried
from Draft
on 10 Dec 2013
at 00:45
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Deep pitch black body with a thin, fast-dying oily light brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, alcohol, anise, pit fruits, licorice and some light spices with coffee and cream tucked away - very nice. Full-bodied; Deep rich roasted malt flavour with a ton of anise and even more alcohol and assertive coffee bitterness - pungent and long-lasting. Aftertaste shows a pungent licorice, anise and deep coffee, alcohol and metallic bitterness - super strong flavours and nothing mild about this at all. Overall, a nice and very pungent beer with a ton of flavours and some sweetness, but a bit too bitter - try aging it for a few years and perhaps the flavours will mellow out some. I sampled this 65 cL bottle purchased from Bottleworks in Seattle, Washington (State) on 10-February-2013 for US$9.99 sampled at home in New Paltz, New York on 28-November-2013 - but needs even more than ~10 months aging, for sure.
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 Nov 2013
at 19:34
6.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Black colour, red hue, slight tan head. Aroma of liquorice, drop, dark cacao and soy sauce. Liquorice flavour, light sour note, roasted malt and red fruits. Very fizzy. Finish malts, caramel, red fruits and coffee notes. Bit too much CO2 coming free, hides the flavour and aroma somewhat. Still, more than decent brew.
(From 66cL bottle @ weekly tasting, Benzai’s place, Oirschot. Thanks for sharing, Countbeer!)
(From 66cL bottle @ weekly tasting, Benzai’s place, Oirschot. Thanks for sharing, Countbeer!)
Tried
from Bottle
on 19 Nov 2013
at 08:01
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle shared by Countbeer @ weekly tasting. Opaque pitch black color, small brown head. Aroma has malts, roasted malts, liquorice. Taste malts, roasted malts, lightly alcohol, bitter. Average body, medium carbonation. Somehow I don’t really like it.
Tried
from Bottle
on 14 Nov 2013
at 16:06
7.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Bottle @ benzai thx to countbeer. Dark brown to black colour with a small off-white head. Smells liquorice, alcohol, red fruits, sweet. Tastes chocolate, roasty, malts, sweet, raisins, red fruits, coffee. Medoum body, soft carbo.
Tried
from Bottle
on 14 Nov 2013
at 16:03
8.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
22 ounce bottle into snifter, no bottle dating. Pours pitch black color with a small fairly dense khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a thin lace cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of dark chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, coffee, raisin, banana, toast, molasses, light char, clove, pepper, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/roasted malt and yeast ester notes; with good strength. Taste of big dark chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, coffee, toast, molasses, raisin, banana, clove, pepper, light char, herbal, and yeast earthiness. Slight roasted bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, roasted malt, toast, molasses, raisin, banana, clove, pepper, light char, and roasted/yeast earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic complexity, balance, and robustness of dark/roasted malt and fruity/spicy yeast flavors; with a great malt/yeast balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full bodied; with a creamy, moderately slick, and lightly chalky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming present after the finish. Overall this is a highly excellent Belgian imperial stout! All around great complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt and yeast ester flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the ABV. A highly enjoyable offering.
Tried
from Bottle
on 24 Oct 2013
at 20:31
5.5/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 7
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 5
This is NOT an Imperial Stout, but more of a high alcohol London porter Black,minimal head.Nose of chocolate,alcohol,brown sugar.Thin bodied light roast,dark fruit notes.Medium alcohol heat
Tried
on 27 Jul 2013
at 21:54
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
650mL bottle, pours black with a small tan head. Aroma brings out Belgian yeast and roasted malt upfront, with a little cocoa powder. Flavour brings out cocoa powder upfront, combined with Belgian yeast, which makes it very light on the palate despite the 8.5%. Quite complex and easy to drink. Wonderful flavour profile, with a skilled marriage of imperial stout and Belgian yeast. Excellent.
Tried
from Bottle
on 05 Jul 2013
at 09:33