Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout - Samuel Smith Old Brewery (Tadcaster)

Displayed for educational use only; do not reuse.

BA SCORE
94
exceptional
-
3,784 Ratings

THE BROS
95
world-class
-
read more »

rAvg: 4.24
pDev: 11.32%
Reviews: 2000
Hads: 1784

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Samuel Smith Old Brewery (Tadcaster)

United Kingdom (England)

Style | ABV
Oatmeal Stout | 5.00% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (1995), on-tap (3), nitro-bottle (1), growler (1).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (25) | Events (0)

Reviews

Sort by: Latest | High | Low | Top Reviewers |

Alström Bros | Show Hads:

« first ‹ prev | 1-25 | 26-50 | 51-75 | next › last »

Reviews by weizenbob:

weizenbob

Michigan

4.08/5 rDev -3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

This 550 ml bottle was taken from a Samuel Smith gift pack, which is really the best value for acquiring Sam Smith. You get three bottles of beer and a tulip-shaped brewery logo pint glass for less than the cost of buying the three bottles individually. This stout was bottled September 16, 2011 (oddly, this was much fresher than the India Ale from the same gift pack). It was served around 55 degrees Fahrenheit and poured into the accompanying glassware.

A standard pour (horizontal bottle, 45-degree glass) yielded a nice big three fingers of fluffy, khaki-colored head. Retention is very good. Delicate lacing glides down the glass as the head recedes. The brew is very dark with just a hint of translucence noted at the thinnest point of the glass. It is very nice looking, near perfect in fact.

It gives off a pleasant aroma as well. Impressions of chocolate are strong. Roasted malts are subtly noted. It smells slightly watery. Though the alcohol is well hidden, its scent is detectable enough to add some nice spicy character to the roasty chocolaty proceedings.

This flavor is very good. Hershey syrup sweetness crashes into a mildly warming alcohol leaving a pleasant impression on the tongue. Malts are roasty without screaming, "Hey, I'm burnt!" There is little to no hop bitterness. It is full flavored while maintaining restraint and tasteful balance. You don't find them like this in America.

The feel of this beer is absolutely heavenly. It is very creamy and goes down smoothly despite having a viscosity that much thinner than my American palate has come to expect. The carbonation level is low, but perfect. It is very easy drinking.

All things considered, this is my favorite oatmeal stout. I wish that I could find a domestic example that was this good, as $4-$5 a bottle for Sam Smith makes it unrealistic as a daily driver. Though it is generally excellent, nothing about this beer stands out in a way that justifies the inflated import pricing. That is really the Achilles heel and great tragedy of the whole experience. I'll drink a few of these every year; but as is, I'm still on the lookout for the perfect, reasonably priced, oatmeal stout.

---

The Two-Schlitz Scale: (reference my profile for an explanation)
I enthusiastically give two Schlitz for Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 21:53:12 | More by weizenbob