Imperial Russian Stout
Ridgeway Brewing in South Stoke, Oxfordshire, England 🏴
Stout - Imperial Regular|
Score
7.32
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Slow, extended ageing before bottling differentiates this style from simply being a strong stout or porter. It makes Ridgeway Imperial Russian Stout considerably more vinous and sharp than an export stout. There is just that little nod towards a lambic beer, with very roast and very bitter flavours. The bitterness mellows over time in the bottle so the style is not intended to be overtly hoppy.
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8.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 10
Overall 7.5
All bottles 33 cl. Tasted simultaneously 14.09.22: Vintage 2012 (№ 8289): very dark brown with garnet and chestnut, foam weaker, creamy with an ashy tint. Aroma seems old, a lot of stale bitter chocolate, moderate sweetness, a crust of black bread, black coffee, a hint of sourness and old red wine, caramel a little, a little spices and walnuts, nutty and cocoa-chocolate shades. Taste: sweet, caramel, caramel liqueur or balm, a little spicy herbs, mild carbonation, a little bitter chocolate and coffee, warms well, mild hop bitterness at the finish, nobly aged, woody-spicy shades and a drop of old whisky. 8/4-/8/5/14=3.9 Vintage 2018 (№ 00693): very dark brown with garnet, good cappuccino foam. Aroma: a little sweeter, honey, caramel, light sourness like from yeast and roasted malt (or barley), dessert chocolate, a little wine, bread and coffee, dried fruits, prunes. Taste: sweetish, more lively carbonation, strong dessert wine with tones of black muscatel, chocolate, coffee, a bit sour, quite elegant and easy to drink, warming effect, dried fruits (prunes and dried dates), bitter finish, good balance. 8/4+/8/5/15=4.0 Vintage 2018 (№ 00685). Tasted 02.10.20: dark brown, brownish foam. Aroma: esters, caramel, wine, honey, fruity, slightly smoky, still good. Taste: caramel, honey, malty, winey, sweet, so British. 7/5/7/4/13=3.6.
Tried
from Bottle
on 15 Sep 2022
at 20:17
7.2/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle. Pours dark chocolate brown with pale beige head. Light barrel feel on nose, roasted malts, dark chocolate. Taste of dark chocolate, cocoa, maybe bit of plum. Okay, not really impressed though.
Tried
from Bottle
on 01 Jan 2022
at 20:03
8.5/10
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Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 8
Look: opaque deep brown with a one finger tall ivory-coloured head of medium retention. Aroma: roast and toast, esters honey, meadow flowers, prune, vinous. Taste: light to medium sweet, roasted, estery, dried fruit, spicy and floral hop. Medium bitterness. Palate: medium body, average carbonation. Overall: surprisingly good.
Tried
on 24 Dec 2020
at 18:57
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Bottle from Beers Of Europe. Appearance - dark brown to black and opaque. Light fawn head. Nose - interesting sweet and savoury thing going on. Getting olive and tapenade, but at the same time, some Jamaica cake, with wood spice and caramel, particularly. Taste - more of the sweet and savoury. As well as olives and cake, now getting salted caramel too. Palate - medium bodied plus with sweet/savoury middle and long linger. Overall - great stuff.
Tried
from Bottle
on 30 Aug 2020
at 21:27
7.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
Bottle 2012 Vintage, at home, Lock-in bottle focus, 28th March 2020. Pours black and slightly thin. Aroma is liquorice, dark malts. Taste is smooth as silk, little to no carbonation, sweet and bitter, kind of tastes like an antique, not bad, nothing to blow the mind.
Tried
from Bottle
on 28 Mar 2020
at 20:40
6.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle from Beers of Europe. Pours black with a thin tan head. Low carbonation. Aromas of leather and prunes. Taste is slick, roast, dark fruit, more leather and a hint of soy. Slightly thin, but good.
Tried
from Bottle
on 22 Feb 2020
at 08:26
7.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Sort skum brun tæt lang Kaffe vanjile tømmer brænd nødder chokolade Bitter modrate sød modrate Oile tør
Tried
on 30 May 2019
at 19:30
7.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
2015 bottle off a shelf at a store. Licorice chocolate syrup beer. Not heavy but felt. Bitter black malt lingers at the end. Nice English yeast character and has aged fine. 838316
Tried
from Bottle
on 29 Dec 2018
at 01:18
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle. Dark brown, small light beige head. Roasted malt, dark chocolate, stone fruits, licorice, ash, alcohol. Finish has some alcohol and a bit sour and sweet.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Nov 2018
at 21:44
7/10
Backlog
Tried
on 13 Sep 2018
at 13:01