Drake's Imperial Stout

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

A very good Impy stout. A nice black pour, creamy head, with loads of roasted malt, chocolate, and coffee in the nose. Flavour is quite balanced with a touch of plum and molasses providing a nice sweet touch. Hard to get now.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

This a bit sweeter than other Imperial stouts that I have had, due to a higher level of chocolate. However, this is not a sweet beer, as there is plenty of coffee and hop bitterness to balance that off. Then a bit of licorice/anise to add another dimension. Huge, thick light brown head that lasts until the end, and it leaves thick smears of foam on the glass. Under that is pure opaque blackness. Pours like motor oil. Smells of chocolate, cherries, and roasted malts. Flavor is great until the end when you're hit with a blast of alcohol. Smooth, full, thick mouthfeel, starting to head into syrup territory....it never quite makes it into something that heavy, allowing for a great middle ground between a regular stout and something that could hold a spoon upright in the glass.I will continue the fight against scurvy and seek out more Drake's beers.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 8

my review is mixed...the last one I got was not nearly as good as I remember, but I can't in good conscience review only that bottle. This is more chocolatey than other imperials (a good thing) with a great nose and body, and it's very smooth for an 8% beer. non-imperial fans may enjoy this one. the last one I had wasn't as strong in any area, but maybe it was old...

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

From a stopper bottle. Poured a deep black with a lasting creamy head. Aroma of dark chocolate, malt, a little coffee. Flavor had dark chocolate, coffee, toasted barley. Finishes dry and a bit bitter. Mouthfeel is creamy, full bodied, but not heavy.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Pours with a dark brown to black body topped by a thin, tan head with some lacing. It’s slightly sweet yet bitter with a hint of roast and a hint of chocoalte. Medium to full bodie and tingly form the carbonation.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Bottle courtesy of SS: Poured a pitch-black color stout with a small dark brown foamy head with some good retention and some lacing. Aroma of pure dark chocolate with some light bitter hops is interesting. Taste is dominated by some strong dark chocolate notes with some subtle dry coffee notes and not as much hops as I was expecting from the aroma. Body is full with some low to medium carbonation and no alcohol could be detected.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

Bottle shared by Slob. Pour was black ruby in color, head ok but not overly impressive. The aroma was vinous, a touch tropical, finishing with ample chocolatey-ness. The flavor was choco-cocoa in character, licorice, slightly tropical (almost like a semi-foreign stout character), finishing with a lightly dry roastiness. The finish is bitter, bitter roasted malts or hops I do not know. Mouthfeel is light, somewhat water for an "imperial" stout, light astringency too. Not my favorite, but a big thanks to Bert for sharing and hanging, a good guy indeed!

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 10 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 10

Fairly light colored for an Imperial Stout, meaning it is black with a touch more brown than one might usually find. The head is a frothy, light brown color that starts out almost two-fingers in height. Aromatic notes of chocolate are quite apparent as I pour this beer, again reinforcing that this beer did not go the heavy handed route when it came time to add the dark malts to the recipe. The aroma is actually quite nice, it is very smooth, especially since it is lacking in that acrid, overly burnt character that many an American Stout (much less the Imperial Stouts) have. Instead the focus remains on a concentrated, dark, yet not overly burnt, malty note that accentuates aromas of chocolate, toasty malt and a nice nuttiness. I really can't quite help but think of some sort of candy of my dreams, made from chocolate freshly ground malt with a hint of espresso for that extra boost. While this isn't the most complex beast out there, there is just something about the aroma of this brew that I am really digging right now; the aroma is much bigger than the 8.75% alcohol would suggest.

Soft and creamy up front, this beer grows in heft and palate coating character as it passes through my mouth. The finish has a solid bitter note to it that is a combination of hop bitterness as well as a drying, roast grain derived bittering. The flavor has a solid chocolate component to it as well, but in the taste a lightly roasted coffee character becomes much more apparent. Dusty cocoa, some roasted nutty notes, a perception of vanilla, something like subtle hazelnut. I really like the weight of this beer, it is not too heavy, yet is certainly thick enough to demand a sipping experience.

While this has lots of big flavors (as is expected of an Imperial Stout), it doesn't bang you over the head with the roast malt like many of the American beasts do. Sometimes the extreme is appreciated, but at other times (right now is one of these for me), something with a bit more restraint and a bit more balance (if such a thing can really be said for an Imperial Stout) is just what one wants. A very well crafted beer, that I am certainly enjoying quite a bit. I also have to praise the 500ml bottle size, not nearly as intimidating as a 22oz bottle would be.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 8

A excellent imperial stout. Love the bottle, with it reclosing pop top. Has good carbonation. A pint a day keeps scurvy away :) Pours very dark with a nice aroma. Very little head. Mouthfeel is msooth and flavor is rich with lots of spices and hops. Very nice.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Poured an opaque black color with a ledium sized, tan head that left very light lacing on the glass. Aroma of smoke, dark fruits, roasted malts, and chocolate. Taste of chocolate malts, roast, smoke, a faint hoppiness, and light alcohol as well... medium carbonation.