One of Omnipollo’s new ’hit records’, an imperial stout with more roasted malts than they ever used before (according to their Facebook page) and flavored with Ethiopian coffee and vanilla beans, brewed in Belgium’s ’Proef’brouwerij - and not Crazy Mountain as given here, at least not my bottle, so I guess they made this at both places for American and European distribution, respectively... ’Coffee cream’-like, very dense, darkish tan coloured, ’membranously’ lacing head, gradually thinning in the middle but very well-retaining, resting on an abyss of ink black beer, the true hazy mahogany reddish brown colour of which is only visible about one millimeter off the edge and under bright light. Intense, overpowering, lush and seductive aroma of high quality espresso (more to the foreground than usual even in coffee stouts) and true, volatile yet initially very prominent vanilla (fading slowly as the bottle stands open!) elegantly hovering above a thick ’cloud’ of hot chocolate sauce, molten milk chocolate even, Belgian ’pralines’ and ’Haagse hopjes’ (especially the latter), fudge, marshmallows, heavily sauced - unsmoked - black pipe tobacco, ’blood iron’ (in combination with the creaminess becoming almost reminiscent of Bailey’s), walnut oil, coffee liqueur, brandy, hints of leather, faint beef stock somewhere, black peppercorns, nutmeg, candied dates, pear syrup, cream, (almost black) roasted pork, dried plums. Intense flavor from the onset onwards, initially a beautifully balanced play of candied date-like ’condensed’ sweetness with elderberry syrup-like sourishness and a touch of umami, in a fat, oily physical environment, very softly carbonated. A thick malt body glides viscously and heavily over the tongue’s surface, coating the entire mouth cavity with sweet toffeeish, deeply nutty and lusciously chocolatey sensations before plunging into total darkness, becoming deeply roasted bitter - yet still retaining that chocolate and caramel sweetness - all the way down to the black coffee regions, which unsurprisingly blend perfectly with the ’higher’, lighter but utterly expressive retronasal aromas of the actual coffee and - to a lesser extent - the vanilla. A very natural feeling of ’blood’-like iron accompanies this and only adds complexity - thanks to feeling so natural. The Ethiopian coffee addition then works wonderfully here, literally feeling as if the finest, most delicately aromatic coffee beans have actually been mixed with the chocolate malts and roasted barley in equal proportions - ending in a sensation of having had a hefty black beer immediately followed by a sip of high quality espresso. The vanilla, very upfront in the nose, is less pronounced retronasally but still has an uplifting effect. Ends with ongoing, intense but still remarkably juicy ’black’ maltiness covering the finish and ’palpably’ going down into the throat along with a peppery hop punch accentuating the coffee bitterness of the roasted malts, and, expectedly, a lot of heating, rum- or whisky-like alcohol, which leaves behind a faint amount of astringency. Wow, this is even better than expected - even taking into account previous experiences with Henok Fentie’s wonderful creations: this is intense, unbelievably rich and thick, yet ’juicy’, refined and delicate at the same time. The alcohol does make it a bit fatiguing in the end and impairs drinkability, but then drinkability isn’t such a big deal in an 11% ’impy’, is it... Thanks to the vanilla and the rich dosis of chocolate malts, the nose gives a ’molten candy bar’-like impression distantly reminiscent of the Noa series or that impressive Yellow Belly thing they did at Buxton, but the roasted bitterness is indeed - as announced - more pronounced here and defies expectations, establishing an uncompromizing ’bitter blackness’ in the end. Ethiopia is the cradle of Coffea arabica and proudly possesses both an ancient tradition and high reputation in the world of coffee, and this tradition has been highlighted here in a tasteful, very expressive way - naming this beer after the famous Ethiopian emperor is clearly intended as both a serious tribute and a cheeky hommage. This is one of those intense, thick stouts I will enjoy till the very last drop; Omnipollo once again proves that they can work magic in creating stunning ’dessert beers’ and that they are among the great creative geniuses in the brewing world, certainly on the eastern side of the Atlantic. This product also testifies to the technical perfection achieved by Belgium’s ’Proef’brouwerij, which, as is well-known, also handles a lot of Mikkeller, To Öl and other gypsy breweries’ beers. I would, however, recommend not to cellar this for too long: even after half an hour the delicate vanilla fragrancy started to thin out into the air, and I’m sure the equally aromatic, yet perhaps a tad more robust coffee aroma would soon follow during extended ageing.

Real nice roasty, cocoa, coffee, licorice. Flavor’s like nose, almost some oak, Flavor’s like nose, sweet up front and a moderately long bitter finish.

Kakao, kawa, ciemna czekolada, wanilia, palonosc, lukrecja - w tej kolejnosci. Duzo ciala, niewiele slodyczy. Robi spore wrazenie, klasa

0,33l Bottle. Pours with a fantastic, fat black color and nice brown head. Wonderful aromas of milk-coffee, dark chocolat, nice malty notes and just slightly vanilla. Later on something earthy. As expected there is a strong taste of dark coffee, roasted malts, some nuts and slighty light vanilla finish. I expected more vanilla, but still a very good beer.

Bottle, 11%. Good caramelly and syrupy aroma, lots of sticky coffee aroma. Black colour. Small frothy light brown head. The flavour is quite sweet, probably lactose, lots of coffee and a mild vanilla finish. Sticky mouthfeel and mild carbonation. Reminds me of some Pohjala beer - which was also good, btw.

Bottle @Curing Lillquist’s man-flu. Black with thick light brown head. Strong, sweet coffee aroma, vanilla too and some cocoa perhaps. Sweet coffee, cocoa and vanilla flavour, roasted bitterness. Warming, boozy.

Bottle. Pours cloudy nearly black with stable dark tan head. Dark aroma of coffee, roast, and darck chocolate, with notes of malt and yeast. Roasty and coffeelike flavour with notes of dark chocolate and malt and lactose and hints of fruit and yeast. Hoppy hints. Roasty and slightly lactic aftertaste. Very good.

Bottle during OT’ers of the year tasting session beer bottle via CotteridgeWines; dark brown pour with a thin tan head, aroma has rich chocolate, vanilla and taste has sweet chocolate, coffee, some nuttiness, creamy mouthfeel.

Draught at Lådan Sliders. Pours black with a huge chocolate head. Sweet aroma of nougat. Drinkable brew, sweet with lots of roasted malts, chocolate, coffee and some nuts.