7.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Deep dark brown coloured body with a pretty thick off-white head, around three centimetres tall. Aroma of deep sugars with some brown sugar, light molasses and a good deal of chocolate all noticeable, but the malt and alcohol are strong as well. Medium to Full-bodied; Strong rich malts show at first with a lot of chocolate and other sweetness, but the malts provide enough support here, with a good kick of bitterness from the grainy side of the malts and some burnt sugars as well. Aftertaste shows some lactose and creaminess with a light dose of vanilla here as well, but the chocolate comes out pretty strongly afterwards and gives off a nice sweetness to couple with some molasses notes, all showing some (not the full amount) alcohol burn towards the end. Overall, a pretty nice Imperial Stout with a very rich characteristic from the malts, but the sugars, especially the chocolate and molasses provide some relief from the richness and a light bitterness balances things out nicely. Overall, a pretty nice beer with a good sweetness, but nice balance - not too rich and not too sweet, but enjoyable throughout. Good to sample, especially in the Christmas season! I sampled this 65 cL bottle, purchased from Trader Joe's in Washington (West End/Georgetown), D.C. on 24-November-2021 for US$3,99 sampled just over a year later at my Mom's house in Manassas, Virginia on Christmas Day 2022 with my wife and three kids celebrating the holiday.
Tried
from Bottle
on 10 Jan 2023
at 15:46