Birrificio Sottobisio Xpochi

Xpochi

 

Birrificio Sottobisio in Balerna, Ticino, Switzerland 🇨🇭

  Stout - Imperial Regular
Score
7.15
ABV: 8.5% IBU: - Ticks: 13
This is our first of a long series of unconventional Beers that Birrificio Sottobisio is going to present time to time featured in a very special black bottle. X Pochi is an Ale beer in Imperial Stout style with a 8,5% alcohol vol. The color is extreme black ( you cannot see through it ). The head is a persistent and creamy deep brown. The aroma is close to the Stout’s one but without the smoky note. It’s more rounded and it reminds cacao, liquorice, Passito wine and fireplace burned aromatic wood. To the palate you’ll get first coffee, tobacco and bitter cacao with very very soft ashy note, then the main hopping comes with its British hops which clean everything but leaving again the palate free to remind coffee and cacao… This beer willl be appreciated during Autumn / Winter time with important meals or for meditation. Recommended a serving temperature of 10-12 degree C and a tulip type glass.
 

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7.4
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5

Bottiglia. Al naso l'aroma rimanda all'orzo tostato, caffè, cioccolato, castagna e cuoio. L'intensità olfattiva è elevata e l'esistenza olfattiva è apprezzabile. Il mantello birroso superiore color ocra resiste abbastanza. La grandezza delle bollicine è a grana fine. Il colore è scuro impenetrabile. Il corpo è pieno. L'amaro è medio. La forza gustativa è elevata e la persistenza è buona. Le sensazioni boccali finali risultano di birra beverina. Il retrogusto è intenso. Al gusto vengono donati toni di miele, cioccolato, caffè, liquirizia, frutta secca e agrumi. Alcol presente.

Tried on 11 Feb 2025 at 04:54


8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

330ml bottle from trade with Anstei. Pours dark, almost black, small deep tan head. Aroma of milk chocolate, caramel. Taste presents a nice cocoa / coffee roast character, hints of leather. Light carbonation. Nice sweet stout.

Tried from Bottle on 22 Aug 2017 at 10:00


7.9
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 7.5

Bottled, thanks Bov! Black with beige head. Rich chocolate licorice aroma. Mid sweet with medium-full body and soft mouthfeel. Lots of chocolate, some tobacco and mild smoke . Low bitterness. Astonishingly harmonious Imperial Stout. Edgeless.

Tried from Bottle on 13 May 2017 at 13:50


7
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Appearance: Very dark brown, small dark tan head.
Aroma: Dark malt, roasted, coffee.
Taste: Very dark malt, roasted, burnt, coffee. Light bitterness. Good, but not great.
Bought: Craft Gallery, 330 ml, CHF 6.50
Info: 2/9-2016, BB: 1/6-2017

Tried on 05 Sep 2016 at 07:08


7
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6

330 ml bottle, much thanks to Matt/Alberto. Pours a thick ink like with no head. Smokey aroma that remains one sided. Flavor is dry and a ton of tobacco character. Smokey finish. Interesting beer. Sipper. I had fun with this one.

Tried from Bottle on 07 Aug 2016 at 00:41


5.4
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 5.5

Die röstigen Noten unterliegen einer deutlich wässrigen und wenig metallernen Note. Röstig malzig, Trockenfrüchte. Die Intensität bleibt verhalten. 10/7/8/8/8/8

Tried on 16 Apr 2016 at 07:28


7.8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Bottle courtesy of anstei. The stream from the bottle when pouring already looks like motor oil, and the appearance is pitch black with a big beige-brown head that transforms rather quickly into a stable layer of foam of maybe 2-3 millimetres. Aroma is black chocolate, ash, tobacco, with a bit of a chili-like spiciness having its fair share. Taste is coffeeish, leather, more ash and tobacco, but with a bit of a graininess that is not really going anywhere, it just provides a roasted grainy background. Mouthfeel is silky, but unfortunately also a little bit watery. Pleasant carbonation (a signature feature of Sottobisio). Medium-long aftertaste of tobacco and ashes. In the following sips, the complexity draws back and hints of a blackcurranty fruitiness develop, also some herbal component, maybe bayleaf? In any case, it’s very mild and it becomes a bit fainter. A nice take on the "Classic" (i.e. not completely overdone ABV) Imperial Stout. It feels a bit too light and is definitely more on the "drinker" than on the "sipper" side. It needs some more complexity or intensity to stay interesting throughout the whole bottle. Still: very respectable for 8.5 ABV.

Tried from Bottle on 04 Apr 2016 at 14:37


7.8
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Tap at Erzbierschof Zurich. Roasty aroma, dark bitter taste. Some liquorice. Quite soft. Lingering finish. An easy imperial stout, so to say.

Tried from Draft on 05 Mar 2016 at 12:13


7.9
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

From tap. Pours pitch black with a dense, chocolate brown and creamy head. Aroma is roasted malty. Breadish and chocolate malty. Bitter, rich, chocolate, breadish and roasted. Dry and bitter. Roasted and slight herbal. Dry and bitter finish.

Tried from Draft on 17 Feb 2016 at 14:03


7.8
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Bottle - Big dark roast, anise and sweetness. Deep jet black with a light brown head. Dark roast and chocolate with a nice bitterness. Well done.

Tried from Bottle on 05 Feb 2016 at 00:04