t Smisje Catherine The Great Imperial Stout

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

330 ml stubby bottle, bought at Voldby Købmandsgård, Denmark. ABV is 10%. Dark brown colour, but far from black. Big beige head. Very malty aroma with notes of brown bread and caramel, only mild roasty notes. The flavour is also malty and medium sweet with caramel and just some mild roasty notes, bitter hops in the finish and aftertaste. Alcohol is noticeable but not disturbing. Probably the weirdest "imperial stout" I’ve had, but if you disregard the anticipations created by the style name, the beer is decent enough to drink. A new style perhaps? - "Imperial Belgian Brown Ale"?

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

Be careful when opening a bottle - it pops open like champagne and foams like everything! It pours a deep, hazy, chocolate brown with a fairly thick but quickly dissipating head. Aroma is fruity and sweet with smoky and molasses undertones. Flavor is quite pleasing, malty and chocolaty with fruity and molasses tones and a strong alcohol bite like a barleywine. Texture is exceptionally tingly and lively, leaving a smoky and alcohol-sharp finish.

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

Would never had guessed this beer as an Imperial Stout. Had the taste of a double with the kick of a triple. Mug a dark amber color, slightly cloudy, taste of malt and a bit sweet. Overall a very nice beverage but in my opinion not properly classified.

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

Bottle: Poured a dark cloudy brown color ale with a super large off-white foamy head with great retention and some perfect lacing. Aroma of Belgian yeast with some caramel malt and some dry fruits – not a stout per say but good aroma nonetheless. Taste is closer to a dark Belgian ale then a stout with loads of dry fruits ester, some caramel malt and some light lingering sugar. Body is quite full with perfect carbonation and no alcohol was discernible. Well done thought I could never had guess this was a stout form looking and drinking this.

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

This was a strange entry into the Imperial Stout category (although the label doesn't lie). It comes out a dark reddish-brown with a huge beige head. The aroma was sweet malt, roasted malt, and sugar cane. The flavour was also sweet, but also had hints of roasted malt.

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

Unsurprisingly pale colored for an Imperial Stout, the beer is a dark, concentrated amber color as it sits in my 25cl tulip glass, but shows a lightly hazy, light-cranberry red color when held up to the light. It is topped by an initially three-finger thick, tan colored head that is held up by a persistent carbonation. Despite being so light in color I do get a solid, city-roast coffee note from the aroma as I am pouring this beer. A deeper inspection yields smoky dark grain notes, some salty peat, some sort of savory component that makes me think of umami rich miso, and a bit of vegetal seaweed.

A fair bit sweeter than I was expecting, though it is fairly light considering the strength of this beer (and for that matter considering other Imperial Stouts). The beer finishes with a persistent, lightly burnt cabbage note that I find contributed from roast grains / malt at times. Lightly roasted coffee flavors, mix with just a hint of smoke, some notes of cocoa towards the middle . This has a somewhat / fairly bitter finish to it that is as much a product of the roast grains as it is from hop notes. This is actually quite light and quaffable, especially when considering the strength and the alcohol seems to be quite well hidden. Some light fruitiness reminiscent of light roasted and smoke prunes and raisins helps to pick up the complexity just a bit.

Not a bad beer, but I was definitely expecting a bit more from this beer. I do like how light bodied and quaffable this is, I like that this is fairly subtle compared to others of the style and I like how much roast character is noticeable despite being so light colored. The vegetal note gets to be a bit too much in the finish, and the flavors are not quite so well integrated as I could want them to be.

Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ

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

Bottle at O’briens. Pours with a dark amber-bown body topped by a thick, off-white head with little lacing. It’s slightly sweet and malty with a touch of yeast and a hint of roast. Basically tastes like a belgian double with a touch of roasted malt. Medium bodied and smooth yet a touch dry.