Hales Pikop Andropovs Rushin Imperial Stout

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

A spot purchase in Seattle that I might have avoided if I'd looked it up. I was encouraged that so many of the off reviews are years old, and at first this had a nice sweet milk chocolate roasted coffee aroma, and looks great. Lower abv so a less thick body was expected. The giant white chunks were a turnoff though, as was the lactic quality that did not belong, and only grew as the beer warmed. It's not a milk stout and wouldn't have been a great example if that style either. A beer that could have been quite good but it seems this one has a long history of quality control issues. Still has its good points, but way under average for the style.

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

A black appearance with a tan head. The aroma is somewhat yeasty with coffee and alcohol coming through. The flavor is rather sour and one dimensional with a hint of soy sauce coming through. Some bitterness in the aftertaste. Not all that great.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 10 | Overall: 4

How in the hell do they get this so dark - or so sour? Pours pitch black. No, darker than that. The lace is about the color of the chocolate milk you made when you were a kid and you put twice as much Quik in the glass as you were supposed to use. Aroma reminds me of sour cherries. The flavor is extremely tart. Burnt chocolate and dark fruits are present, but I sense no hops at all. You sure this is an Imperial Stout? Mouthfeel reminds me of a Kriek or sour Gummie Bears. It's thick but not very pleasant. Overall I can't say much for this. Is it just me or has Hale's gone downhill over the past few years?

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 6

This is a bit of a disappointment for an imperial stout. The appearance is really quite nice with a pitch black body under a dense, if smallish, brown head. The aroma is pretty good too, with coffee, black chocolate and a grape or plum fruitiness. The flavor is where this one falls apart. The flavor is thin and salty with a slightly tart finish that is disappointing after the rest of the aspects. Finishes with a smokey, charred malt finish.

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

Deep black color with a cocoa colored head. Medium bodied.Chocolate nose. Subtle underlying sourness throwing things off.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 5

Scott and his wife were kind enough to have me over last night, for a very-much welcome home-cooked meal, and a few tasty beers too. This particular PacNW brewery, which is never seen in Southern California, has something of an odd distribution system, in that their beers are fairly easy to find in the Hampton Roads area. Anyway, it was with this beer that we finished off the evening watching ABC's Tuesday night lineup of sitcoms....

But me and Scott both agreed that this "Imperial Stout" had not a few issues.

Where's the complexity? The vinious mouthfeel? The warming alcohol? The arcane fruit notes in the front, and the sturdy bitterness in the back?

But this seemed to me to come across to be more along the lines of a Milk Stout gone wrong..., since this does have some swet-lactic things going in the background.

Not horrible, but just not "Imperial" enough to be called an "Imperial"..., and not interesting enough to be called a "Stout", either.

Remember the old "Popeye" cartoons? Well, I guess you could call this 'The Olive Oil of Imperial Stouts: thin, weak, and rather annoying'.
//TB

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

Eclipse black color. Large tan foamy head. Aroma is roast malts, cheery and chocolate. A medium to full bodied Russian Imperial Stout. Malts are chocolate and roasty. Touches of coffee, chocolate and vanilla. Slightly bitter and spicy hops. Very smooth flavors. Creamy and full mouthfeel. Very fine carbonation. Flavors are a little on the mild side for an Imperial Stout, but it still has all the qualities of a good stout. Another of the “Brewers Choice” Series of beers from Hale’s, if this one and the Aftermath Imperial IPA are any indication, I can’t wait to see what’s next! Mouthfeel is creamy and full. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.