Sacramento Russian Imperial Stout

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

again better on tap. do they have slight bottling issues. slightly thinner than the bigger imperials, the flavor is big--roasetd chocolate, coffee tones, malt, with a nice hop balance. solid beer. 3.6 bottle, 4+ tap.

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

Almost black with ruby around the edges. The aroma is a bit weak, but I am picking up some grapes. Some roasted and chocolate flavor, but kind of thin. Odd aftertaste.

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

Picked up a 22-oz bottle of this from the SPD Market (Nevada City, CA), so that I could have something nice and hearty to sip on while opening gifts with my folks over the hoiday weekend. And while this wasn't very "big" or "agressive" (as far as Imperial Stouts go), it was still a very nice and enjoyable Stout, just the same.

First off, while I'm not much for oohing-and-aahing over a particular beer bottle label, this beer does feature a very attractive label, featuring reds and purples, and a decidely "Russian/Soviet"-esqe motiff. Tasteful use of Cyrillic, as well.

Once I got this beer into a glass, it continued to impress, visually. Nice head of foam, with excellent head retention and lacing.

Rather buy-the-numbers, as far as the aroma goes. Nothing that leads one to believe that this is anything but a slightly bigger than average Stout, for the most part. That is to say, not a whole lot in the way of fruity/plummy notes in the nose, for example.

The same can be said for the flavor profile. A bigger-than-the-average-Stout, but not nearly huge or as complex as what I would expect from an Imperial Stout. Tasty? Yes, quite. But seems to come across as an "Imperial Stout Lite", IMO.

A worthy beer to sample, but don't expect your socks to fly off at anytime during the sampling of this beer. Tasty, but rather tame for an Imperial Stout IMHO.
//TB

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

Dark black color. Medium tan head. Aroma is chocolate. A medium to full bodied Imperial Stout. Malts are roasted, very choclately with a touch of vanilla and coffee. Hops are slightly spicy. Smooth and fairly creamy texture. Hint of alcohol bite. Touch of dark fruits, plum and cherry. A nice imperial stout. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and dry. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 4

sampled at RBSG 04 has the usual imperial stout appearance: black. medium body, slightly hoppy, but really lacks the cojones to be an imperial. just too light in the flavor department

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

This impy stout pours with a black body topped by a thin head with little lacing. The aroma is slightly sweet yet bitter and malty with slight roasty notes and a touch of chocolate. There is also a slight cigarette ash note. The flavor is bitter and slightly malty with roasty notes. Medium to full bodied and watery.