Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout - North Coast Brewing Co.

jwhawkins81

Ohio

3.63/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Aroma - Sweet malt with roasted malts

Appearance - Poured dark with a light brown head that stuck around for a while.

Taste - Slight bitter hop finish with plenty of roasted malt. Lots of roasted malt actually. Is it good? Kinda, but this strikes me as a middle of the road R.I.S. nothing special.

Mouthfeel - Relatively full bodied

Drinkability - Yes.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2009 21:16:11 | More by jwhawkins81

northaustin

Texas

3.63/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

poured into a schnifter. slight head with a thick lacing. pours an almost black with dark brown head.

smell is pretty standard. to be honest im struggling to think of a way to describe it. its as grainy as i expected from an imperial stout but nothing too strong or noticeable.

the alchohol is masked very well and isnt so sweet that it gives you that heartburny feeling.

mouthfeel and drinkability are superb. much smoother and thin than other russian imperial stouts. incomparable to other commercially availabe beers of the style.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2009 03:41:49 | More by northaustin

Bajasith

California

3.63/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Wow... Poured very dark with a slight two finger head.

As I do with all my first taste beers, the light test... strong thin gold rim obove dark reddish tint body.

Strong fruity smell, almost like a red wine with slight sulfuric lingering aroma... which made this beer very appealing.

Very strong earthy flavor that goes down very smooth. Very little lingering burnt aftertaste which makes this beer very drinkable. I really enjoyed drinking this beer for the first time.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2009 20:57:41 | More by Bajasith

hopfacebrew

Colorado

3.63/5  rDev -15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from 12oz bottle to globe glass.

A - The beer pours a deep black color with a nice 1.5 finger brown head with decent retention and excellent lacing.

S - A lot of roasted malt character with a noticeable alcohol warmth.

T - The beer is smooth, at first. Some chocolate, coffee, and roasted malt character. The middle of brings a mild bitterness and a bit of sweetness. A noticeable alcohol warmth. The beer finishes sweet and strong but very crisp.

M - Full bodied with a little much in terms of carbonation, in my opinion.

D - Good

Note: This review was a re-post from my former account, jmkratt, which was hacked and I lost all my reviews...sorry for the redundancy.

Serving type: bottle

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2012 14:53:35 | More by hopfacebrew

Joey7F

Florida

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 1.5

My first Russian Imperial Stout

A - Black with streeks of reddish brown where the light hits, almost brown head
S - Alcohol, coffee, alcohol and more alcohol
T - Coffee, alcohol, alcohol and more alcohol. If the alcohol was better concealed I would have rated it a 5. Very tasty stout, but the alcohol was a bit distracting
M - Very thick, almost like a doppelbock
D - After one, I was done for the night.

--Joey

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2005 19:47:23 | More by Joey7F

Spidey13

Kentucky

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a snifter. Very black beer with a nice, dark brown head that left nice lacing on the sides of the glass. Smelled mostly of coffee and dark malts. Taste started with strong coffee with a bit of alcohol, followed by lots of hop bitterness. The mouthfeel is very smooth and creamy. This is a very good, strong, sipping beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2007 03:05:15 | More by Spidey13

trbergman

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a tulip.

A - Deep coffee brown body with a one-finger tan head.

S - Milk chocolate, figs, hints of coffee with cream.

T - Roasted grain, coffee, chocolate, moderate bitterness. Some unfortunate metallic taste that lessens as it warms.

M - Round and full-bodied with moderate carbonation.

D - It's not a bad beer, but there are better Imperial stouts out there.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2009 02:54:20 | More by trbergman

callmescraps

Massachusetts

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Not always my favorite style, but I see this guy around all the time and finally decided to give it a bid.

Appearance - Black. Ok, maybe just very, very, very dark brown. Pretty much black. An inch of mocha head hangs around and laces nicely. Looks like a winner.

Smell - Lots of dark fruits. Cherries and chocolate come first. There is almost a prune thing going on. Lots of chocolate and roast malt. A hint of smoke.

Taste - Follows the smell. Lots of chocolate and cherry up front. There is a lot of roast on the finish. Honestly, it seems a little thin. Just sort of sits there in the middle. Almost some tart fruit randomly in there, which is unsettling.

Mouthfeel - Decidedly thin. Just not luxurious enough. Almost watery. Eh.

Drinkability - Not bad, but that might be because it doesn't seem to have enough working. The roast follows unpleasantly.

This is a fine beer. Pretty good, but not doing anything special for me. Quite disappointed with the body. Otherwise, it's a very good bang for your buck, but it's not the worst idea to spend a few more bucks.

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2009 04:31:51 | More by callmescraps

Jwale73

Rhode Island

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in a tulip. Poured one shade shy of black with a quarter inch tan-colored head that dissipates into a skim with a solid band around the edges. Nose was very mild and subdued - some malt, some brown sugar and a hint of hops. Taste reveals chocolate malt, brown sugar, molasses, black licorice and a definite hops presence. Mouthfeel was just shy of medium-bodied, but a bit too much carbonation for the style - I like my RIS's lightly carbonated and oily/viscous. Alcohol is well-hidden on this beer, making it fairly sessionable for the style, but a little too much hops in the mix for my liking. Nonetheless, a solid, readily available offering.

Serving type: on-tap

09-12-2009 01:20:01 | More by Jwale73

shivtim

Georgia

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A pretty good stout that is none-the-less overly popular.
Poured into a pint. Thick black/brown, with a good cafe au lait head.
Nose is overly sweet, but with some nice strong malts and even a bit of hop character that shines through.
Taste is syrupy, oily dark malts, well roasted, with some sugary sweetness. Slight ethanol on the end.
Good foamy mouthfeel, and decent drinkability except for the ABV. Like I said, decent stout.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2009 20:04:42 | More by shivtim

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 fl oz bottle, poured into a Westmalle chalice.

Coal black in colour, with a thin covering of a tanned head, this turned into a couple of wisps and half a collar before very long.

The aromas and taste were very simular, dark chocolate and burnt malts, some raisins and Victoria plums were detected in the taste however, which gave it a less agressive flavour.

The body was rich and heavy, which hid the alcohol very well.

Easy to drink and interesting, not a style I have on a regular basis, but most enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2009 21:09:30 | More by BlackHaddock

JordonHoltzman

New York

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

poured in a pint glass, a completely black brew with a mocha-colored thick foamy head that looks sticky.
smells of dark chocolate along with strong hints of coffee and some caramel.
half chocolate/coffee, and citrusy hops as well in the taste.
the carbonation is a little more than i prefer.
unique RIS in the sense its more hoppy than others, but its very good.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2010 20:09:11 | More by JordonHoltzman

Arithmeticus

Maryland

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: solid black; decent head
S: hints of molasses and chocolate; the aroma, to my senses, was not prominent
T: not as complex and adventurous as I was expecting (given the ratings I was expecting to be blown away with abundant flavors); for a stout, it is somewhat hoppy, with traces of orange and grapefruit; smooth aftertaste; not very sweet
M: rich and smooth to the tongue--wonderful feel!

Overall, a good stout with a broad appeal, but perhaps not exactly what you're looking for if you're out for an epiphany.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2010 14:40:07 | More by Arithmeticus

AdamBear

Pennsylvania

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A-beautiful black, nice light tan head

S-chocolate and cocoa beans

T-wow its like rich but creamy chocolate. there's not much of a big after-taste. abv is noticeably high

M-very very smooth, almost no carbonation. surprisingly a dry finish though.

D-abv hits quickly. taste stays pretty well but gets a little bitterness to it, i enjoyed this all the way through, but more than one would be difficult to drink at a time.

Serving type: nitro-tap

09-27-2010 02:20:59 | More by AdamBear

Auracom

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 oz. bottle into my trusty C&B tulip on April 3rd, 2011.

Pours a very dark brown coloring, nearly black but not quite, with a finger-and-a-half light brown head. Decent retention for the ABV, slowly breaks down to a thin white coating with concentrated alcohol feet on the sides. Great lacing on this badboy. Doesn't look oily or quite as thick as many other imperial stouts I've tasted.

The aroma is predominantly coffee, roasted almonds, milk chocolate (moreso than dark chocolate), slight lactose, *minimal* citrus, and a little bit of alcohol. Not getting a whole lot of complexity with additional nuances such as spices.

The drink has more roasted notes than the aroma and more emphasis on the dark chocolate character with a lot of bitter bite at the backend. The dk. chocolate carries through to the aftertaste and is really nice. Less coffee notes. Some hops but I'm attributing more of the bitterness to the chocolate. ABV is slightly present but rather-well hidden. I can tell it's under 10%.

Mouthfeel is pretty textbook - medium/med. heavy body, smooth, appropriate carbonation. Neither truly thick nor chewy.

For an RIS, it drinks relatively easiy. The slightly lower ABV hides well and it's not really overbearing on the palate. Is it enjoyable? Yes. Is it safe? Yes. Is it too safe? Perhaps. Next to Founder's IS, this is the most standard-smelling and tasting imperial stout that I've tried, but it doesn't really shine in any particular category. FIS offers considerably more in complexity and flavor. The best quality for Raspy is in the smell; I'm really enjoying that milk chocolate aroma. It's a very nice entry into the style and I ought to have tried it earlier. Bonus points for absolute ease in finding this all over the place.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2011 01:54:50 | More by Auracom

guinness33

New Jersey

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

this is one of the oddest reviews i'm probably ever gonna have to make, with my ratings all over the map, pretty much. this brew is made exceptionally well. it looks damn near perfect, with a dark as night pour and an awesome tan head that provides an equally awesome cascading effect. so far, a damn near perfect beer. smells of coffee, chocolate, roatsed malt with hints of fruitiness (raisins, perhaps?). nothing that blew me out of the water, but a good, solid smell nonetheless. the taste, while obviously appealing to most drinkers, just wasn't for me. i don't like coffee to begin withm and the coffee taste here simply overpowered all other tastes too much. the other dominant flavour here was the alcohol, which was surprising since the smell gave hardly any indication of, and at 8.9%, i figured it'd be all over the place with this one. it's a generally smooth brew overall, but i can't say that i'd be able to have any more than one at a time, and would probably only try this again on a rare occasion. i was surprisingly disappointed here...like i said, a well made brew, just not my cup of tea (or coffee, in this case).

Serving type: bottle

10-14-2003 23:48:35 | More by guinness33

grynder33

Wisconsin

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Had a beautiful dark color, a coffee chocolate aroma, initialy a smooth velvety feel in the mouth, but the CO2 started coming on strong. The first tastewas complex, fruit chocolate carmel, but then a big bitter alcohol taste started building in the back of my throat and became unpleasant. This is good stuff, but you probaly have to sip it slower than Scotch Whiskey

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2003 11:08:51 | More by grynder33

tjthresh

Indiana

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours and inky opaque black with a brown head that disapates to a ring. Molasses, smoke, bitter dark chocolate, dark roast coffee, chewing tobacco, spicey hops and alcohol in the nose. Prunes, very bitter, chocolate grit. Light smoke. Rather thin. Higher carbonation for the style. Slick and oily. Very good.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2006 17:07:03 | More by tjthresh

sstackho

Ontario (Canada)

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Four 12oz bottles for $9 from Bauer Wines in Boston. Pours black, with a good head. Very good lacing. Rich nose of malts and hops. First taste is strong and warm, but the main taste is hurt by what feels like too much alcohol, so it goes down hot - and I typically have no problem with big beers. Tangy flavour. Nice lingering hop and malt aftertaste. Overall, I'm not actually enjoying this one too much. I will let its brothers age.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2008 02:21:48 | More by sstackho

DavoleBomb

Ohio

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint glass.

4.0 A: Used motor oil color, can't see through anything. Creamy head with average retention and lots of lacing.

3.5 S: Chocolately with hints of coffee and plenty of roasted malt. Some hop aroma too. However, aroma just isn't strong enough.

3.5 T: Big strong taste with is neither bad nor great. Bittersweet chocolate, espresso beans, and lots of roasted malt. Bitter aftertaste.

4.0 M: Medium heavy body. Right amount of carbonation, good for the style. Very smooth.

3.5 D: Not my favorite RIS, but worth a drink.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2009 17:34:08 | More by DavoleBomb

pmccallum86

Minnesota

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Pours a deep dark brown/black color, almost like motor oil. Thick chocolate color head with great lacing and retention on the glass.

The smell is of rich chocolates, cocoa and coffee. Some alcohol is also present in the smell.

The taste is just like the smell very rich chocolate, like a liquid chocolate cream pie. Some toffee and caramel are also present with a warming smooth alcohol. Maybe a little light on the boldness of the flavors though.

Great mouthfeel, a thick and viscous full bodied beer. Creamy heavy texture on the tongue.

Quite a drinkable RIS, however I would prefer a little more boldness in the flavor.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2009 03:30:20 | More by pmccallum86

Lauthaha

Michigan

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a beer taster.

Appearance: Beer pours a cola-like color with just a touch more consistency than cola. Head is brown, very frothy and active. As it recedes, it leaves unpredictable thick-spiderweb lacing. It remains at about one-finger.

Smell: It smells like cologne...haha, what kind I couldn't tell ya. Some mellow espresso bean flavor is the focus here, with a touch of dark chocolate hidden within a mostly milk-chocolate zone. Crisp alcohol and gentle prune hide underneath all of the above.

Taste/Mouthfeel: Beer is slightly syrupy upon entry, and brings a gentle (almost citric?) sourness. As the carbonation works its magic, the chocolate and espresso make appearances, but everything is overshadowed by a biting alcoholic presence and lack of "stout-ness." Rinses generally clean, with more of the coffee bitterness in the aftertaste.

Overall: Slightly disappointed by this beer...I'm not a fan of sour, especially in an RIS...but the sourness doesn't completely destroy the taste. I'd rather have a Stone.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2011 01:30:32 | More by Lauthaha

davey101

Connecticut

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 oz stubby bottle into a DFH siganture glass at fridge temp. Allowed to warm up for a while.

A - Deep black viscous body that let's zero light pass through. Awesome mocha head and lacing.

S - Bitter chocolate, vanilla and oak, roasted malts. Nothing spectacular.

T - Nice thick mouthfeel with some crisp carbonation. Chocolate and coffee notes with a smooth vanilla and malt finish. Some bitterness and alcohol warming.

O - This RIS is awesome at its price point, but it is fairly average compared to some of the big name stouts out there, despite their high cost.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2011 00:42:06 | More by davey101

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Old Rasputin is an enjoyable RIS with an apparent emphasis on roasted malt, giving this beer roasted and charred flavors with prune-like sweetness and hints of cocoa beans and roasted coffee beans. Unfortunately, the ethanol is able to bleed through somewhat substantially, and while the roasted malt and chocolate flavors are substantial, they're not as overwhelming as in, say, Odin's Tipple. The result, for me, is a beer with good aroma and taste, but unfortunately hurt by an easily detectable ethanol presence that detracts from these more interesting components. Good, but due to this imbalance, I'd say not in the upper echelon as it's currently ranked.

Pours a 2cm head of dark tan foam: the bubbles are small and compressed, giving this a very dense head. Retention is about average for the style, lasting only a minute or so as it fades to a thin cap of foam atop the body. Lacing is present, modest, a few Body is an opaque brown to black, with no visible carbonation.

Aroma primarily of roasted malt, with some dark prune-like sweetness, ethanol, and slight vanilla. Not as complex or huge of an aroma as I was hoping/expecting.

Taste is generally of roasted malt, unrefined cocoa nibs, prune-like sweetness and ethanol. Opens with prune and raisin-like sweetness on the front of the tongue, moving to a mid-palate of roasted malt, prune-like sweetness, strong ethanol, and hints of modest chocolate and coffee. Back of palate picks up ethanol and roasted malt, leading to an aftertaste of lingering roasted malt, minor dark chocolate and roasted coffee beans, and subdued ethanol. I really like the aftertaste of this beer and wish that the entire experience was as enjoyable.

Beer is medium-heavy to heavy in body weight, with medium levels of carbonation. The result is a beer with enough carbonation to slowly propel this across the palate in an appropriate fashion for an imperial stout. Ethanol heat and burn is definitely felt across the entire palate, but is less detracting here than elsewhere. Substantial stickiness across the palate after each sip.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2012 06:42:37 | More by falloutsnow

far333

Connecticut

3.55/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

This one's powerful, starting with the scary illustration of the Russian cleric himself on the label. Pours a deep brown color, with flashes of ruby where the light gets through. Head is an inch high, light brown, big and frothy. Rich aroma of chocolate, toasted malt, and alcohol. Bitter coffee flavor greets the tongue, followed by a strong alcohol finish. Not much room left for other flavors. I'm half way through the glass, and the head remains, accompanied by wavy lacing down the sides of the glass. Not for the faint of heart.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2003 09:09:18 | More by far333