Bottle: Dark brown with a small tan head. Light lacing. Aroma is mostly roasted malt with coffee and chocolate. Flavor is solid and rich with roastiness, chocolate, and coffee. Simple, straightforward, and solid. Thanks Pepsican.

Courtesy of Gillard. Pours dark dark brown with thin dark tan head. The aroma is varied and rich with dark roasty malts chocolate malts, plums, sweet black grapes, and musty sun drenched cherry purée. A hotness builds to distracting with a big draw. The taste is dark roasty malts, rich chocolate malts, mild burnt malts mixed with black grapes, dates and sugar coated raisins. There is also a mild alcohol sense that is pretty “in check” for a beer with this huge ABV. Ends in a mild manner fashion leaving a light dark roasty and chocolate maltiness into the finish and carries into the after taste.

From Skyview. I didn’t like this one. Dark brown color and very thin for an imperial stout. I agree with Badgerben that there is lactose, but it doesn’t taste very good, with an off flavor of grain steeped in water. No malt sweetness. It seems like something went wrong.

Deep brown body, thick, clumping tan head. Rich roasted malt aroma with hints of molasses and chocolate. Very dry, roasty body, with light prickly heat and charred, burnt notes, tannic, with a woody, bitter finish. Chocolate and a hint of molasses lend complexity, but are overwhelmed by the roasted notes. Not a compelling Imperial Stout.

2006 bottle from The_Enemy, consumed on 8/12/06.
Strong pour yields a small, but quite creamy, dark sandy-tan head. Some sediment left on the bottom, with medium to medium-low clarity in the deep black liquid. Deep violet tinges on the sides spell plenty of roasted barley. Head remains at cover, with some light lacing.Bittersweet nose at first, with deep chocolate cake icing, fudge and roasted barley vinousness. Very even and soothing, without any mess of overdone hops. Growing lightly tart/sour as it warms, with more of a transparent aroma, showing off the chocolate malt, light black malt smokiness and some salty toffee flavors. Rather complex and certainly not overdone. No sign of the 12% in the nose. More reassuringly strong in the nose, than assertive.
And it translates well to the flavor. Creamy, malted milk shake flavors up front, with a very creamy, well-malted mouthfeel that has sugars oozing everywhere. But decidedly balanced by a blossoming roastiness, drying out further on the finish, with a lightly lip-curling smokiness. Some traces of tar and treacle remain on the palate. Very much milk-chocolatey, through and through, with lightly tart lactic notes taking the place of hops and enlivening things. Low carbonation, moderately complex and the smoke is well-appreciated. No sign of 12 percent, hard to believe it’s that high. Great brewer.

Sampled at the 3Floyd’s Dark Lord party. Imperial? I don’t think so. More akin to a Two Brothers Northwind. Then again, I’m trying it with Dark Lord much on my mind. Lighter in taste, then, than I’m looking for, but with a kind of okay fruity finish.

Twelve percent? Wow, this was the thinnest 12% I’ve yet come across - more of a dark brown than the black I would expect - quite nutty, with quite a bit of artificial sweetness dominating - some earthy, woody notes try to make things interesting, but really don’t.