Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout - Rogue Ales

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a nice dark brown almost black color with a thick, frothy coffe-colored head. Roasted malty aroma with chocolate, oatmel, toffee notes. Dark chocolate roasted maltiness with hints of burnt toast, caramel, nut and toffee. Very quaffable and sweet with slight dry finish.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2008 07:47:53 | More by corby112

mightymoksha

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Served in pint glass.

Pours an oily black, with a rich, sticky beige head. Head retains very well and covers the glass all the way down. Beautiful.

Aroma is complex, featuring hints of cacao, milk chocolate, dark roasted coffee and toffee.

Outrageously smooth, a rich, roasted malt sweetness is balanced perfectly with a mild bitterness. Notes of cacao and dark roasted coffee are the most prominent. Smokey and toffee/butterscotch notes are also present. Semi-dry, smokey, coffee-esque finish. Delicious.

Again, outrageously smooth on the palate. A hearty body and creamy mouthfeel make this one a treat.

Delicious and moderate alcohol content. That, along with my devotion to delicious black coffee, I find it to be extremely drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

10-19-2009 04:30:02 | More by mightymoksha

Fikash

California

4.75/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What more could you want from an oatmeal stout? It's creamy, delicious, aromatic, and dances perfectly on your tongue. The roasted notes of coffee and chocolate are present but masterfully subdued. Balance is the end result here, and Rogue has achieved it. The color is perfectly dark, the consistency is perfectly stout-like. There are few better examples of this style.

You will not be disappointed by this beer.

Serving type: on-tap

06-18-2011 06:27:37 | More by Fikash

hyuga

North Carolina

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Black, nearly opaque, with an impressive dark tan foam topping it. This settles, but stays pretty thick and leaves patchy lace. Dark chocolate aroma with some citrus and fruity hop character mixed in. Great malt/hop balance in the taste. Chocolate in the front and citrus in the finish. A bit of roasted/coffee character in between. Fantastic mouthfeel, probably the smoothest stout I've tried! Great complexity, Close to full-bodied, but you could say it's medium-full bodied. Just a wonderful taste from start to finish. Exceptionally drinkable! I can see this being a regular favorite of mine.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2002 01:42:21 | More by hyuga

Winter

Wisconsin

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is an excellent stout! 22 oz "bomber". Pours out black with a thick, medium brown head. Aroma combines sweet scents of chocolate, caramel, oats and coffee. Mouthfeel is smooth, creamy and full-bodied. Tastes are of chocolate, oatmeal, coffee and roasted malts. There's a smoky bitterness in the finish. This is the first Rogue beer that I've tried and I have to admit that I'm very impressed.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2002 20:37:44 | More by Winter

Jon

Illinois

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

This stout exemplifies balance just as well as or better than any stout I've tried. Pours opaque with a frothy brown head that lasts indefinitely. Nose is of the roasted variety with a bit of chocolate and coffee characters. Taste is nearly unsurpassed. Notes of hoppy bitterness, bittersweet chocolate, roasted malt and coffee are all there. Excellent mouthfeel. Finish lingers for what seems like forever. It's hard to get enough of this blissful stout.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2002 14:28:08 | More by Jon

DPMomutant

Missouri

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

I've been looking forward to finding this one...

Pours black as death with a small ruby/brown head. The head is creamy a dissipates fairly quickly but looks like some is trying to hang on to the side.

The smell is more noticeable than many beers I've had lately. Mostly like a mocha coffee smell, maybe a touch sweeter. A little toasty malt smell in there too.

The taste goes through many nice stages throughout the drink. The mild coffee taste starts in front and some candy sweetness in the back. The aftertaste really pays off with the chocolate and a bit more of the coffee. A wonderful taste.

This is a little more carbonated than most stouts. Might be the only thing even slightly wrong with this brew, and it isn't bad. It still goes down great and the taste doesn't hurt it.

Not much to say about drinkability. This bomber was great....and I so wish I had another. This has great taste without being too hard on your head. Great for sessions!

A couple of quick postscripts: 1) This is warming a bit and getting even better. 2) If you're in the KC area I found this at the south Gomer's, my first sighting of this great brew.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2004 05:45:46 | More by DPMomutant

beersarang

California

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Wow, This beer pours an incredible dark brown which is just a few shades short of black. The generous and rocky head is also a deep tan that I've rarely seen.

The aroma is that of coffee and toasted malts. You can smell the roasting malts and the citrusy character of the cascade hops.

Tastes so rich and so incredible malty. The roasted flavor covers the palate and rests in the back of the mouth. As the beer goes down the hop bitterness comes into play at equal strength. The malts are not overwhelmed by the hops, and the hops are not overwhelmed by the malts. This is a perfectly balanced beer, and tastes so smooth.

Goes down easy, the carbonation is appropriate for a stout, not too high at all. Feels wonderful in the mouth, this beer is thick, but not syrupy by any means.

Tastes great, smells great, and a joy to look at. I will buy this again and again.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2005 21:48:27 | More by beersarang

waughbrew

Massachusetts

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Dark chocolate silk with just enough complexity to always be interesting yet not so intense so as to lose drinkability. This is THE session stout. Aroma is chocolate-covered black raspberries. The roastedness is strong but melds seamlessly with the other flavors of caramel and hops. Yes, the hops are there, just like we expect from Rogue, but they are not overly fruity. Their flavor adds earthiness and life to the aroma and a vinous depth to the flavor. Body is medium-thin, but the low carbonation stops it from feeling at all fizzy. Lingering bitterness and roasted acidity tantalize the taste buds for another sip. Oh yeah, this is nice.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2005 01:53:37 | More by waughbrew

karst

Missouri

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

OLIVIA What's a drunken man like, fool?
CLOWN Like a drowned man, a fool, and a madman: one draught above heat makes him a fool, the second mads him, and a third drowns him. "Twelfth Night" (1.5.127-30)

Ale (similar to but heavier than beer) was the drink of choice in Shakespeare's day. Everyone from the poorest farmer to the Queen herself drank the brew made from malt, and a mini brewery was an essential part of every household. Shakespeare's own father was an official ale taster in Stratford.

Rogue's Stout would have drowned the Bard's father with wonderful taste wrapped in a cloak of darkness topped with a rich chocolate brown head. Aroma does not do justice to a taste toasted bitterness, thick malt, and perfect mouthfeel! Each sip ends in wonderment about the balance. It nearly defies description and certainly will take you away into a general joy that will likely be shared by all at the table that share its pleasures.

“(I) Drink to the general joy of the whole table” Macbeth: Macbeth, III, iv

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2005 22:03:11 | More by karst

porter17

New Jersey

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A solid stout with a near black appearance and a chocolate smell sure to please any chocoholic. It doesn't stop there: the taste of chocolate is prevelent in the taste (though not as strong as the beer's brother: Rogue chocolate stout) . There is a light coffee and slightly more noticeable caramel overtone. A rich, thick mouthfeel, it is a beer that you can drink as a session beer.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2006 03:17:51 | More by porter17

Orrshow

Alberta (Canada)

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance – Well…surprise, it’s black. The head is a nice milk chocolate color and is almost a touch frothy. Lacing on the glass is quite good.

Smell – Very nice and strong roasted malt smell to this one. I also sense bits of chocolate malt and coffee. Somewhere in there is can also detect some hops which give out a faint citrus aroma. All in all quite good.

Taste – Absolutely exceptional. Up front is so strong of roasted malts it crazy. The flavor of toasted coffee bean is to follow with equal strength. Chocolate is not as present, but can be detected if looked for. This beer then has a strong hop finish giving a nice soothing bitterness along with burnt wood feeling.

Mouthfeel – Thick and creamy just as it should be. Carbonation is not detectable, but the beer is not flat. Great.

Drinkability – Perfect.

As I got farther into this bottle I fell in love with this stout more and more. It is fantastic. Each sip was better right to the bitter end. Buy this now if you can, you won’t regret it.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2006 06:50:16 | More by Orrshow

TheFeintingGoat

New York

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

The bottle says "ebony" and boy do they tell it like it is, dark and the day before creation this one is. A dirty, cola colored head as well that creates a union of the darkest proportions.
The smell is quite good, with cola, coffee, toffee, unsweetened chocolate and (i'll be damned) mud permeating throughout. The citric acid here is a bit too dominant as you get through the beer.
This beer is nice and salty on the front (which reminds me of coastal pacific waters) with the coffee/toffee and cream flavors coming out to play throughout the mouth. Hops are definitly evident, and this is the great, american thing about this beer. It's very bold, yet refined and able to hold itself with the rest of the world's stouts.
The mouthfeel is, quite honestly, perfect. It's lead-heavy, however it doesn't weigh you down, but controls you palette in the most elegant of ways. When you finish the beer the aftertaste moves toward a rennet on the back, like a fine, salty cheese. A nice cream stout moves to a chocolate orange to a fine cheese--you can't ask for much more.
It's drinkability it good, despite the fact that you can really only session one (tops two) of these at a time. The answer to that? One is all you need. 6% ABV didn't seem like alot until about 10 minutes after I finished it, when this issue was resolved for me. Very enjoyable, very drinkable, and very warming. It's the perfect drink if you want high flavor but the humbleness of your beverage to blend in to what else is going on around you (Food, friends, etc.). Not much wrong here, not much at all. Can't wait to try this gem on tap.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2006 05:12:03 | More by TheFeintingGoat

meechum

Georgia

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I am a real beer novice. This being one of my very first gourmet brews. I may not have all the terminology down yet but I will try my best to give my impressions about this wonderful beer.

A - Poured very dark almost black very much like a melted chocolate syrup almost into a thick almost 2 inch head creamy brown head that lasted several minutes

S - The smell was aromatic with chocolate overtones and with a hint of spices and nutty smells (it was awesome)

T - Taste was very velvety and smooth had a wonderful chocolate up front and then moving to just a bit of the more bitter hoppy flavors I guess.

M - This was very creamy and smooth felt very full in the mouth was thick and very pleasant

D - I don't know what to say other than I enjoyed every sip of this wonderful beer

Like I said I'm new to this so I won't pretend to be an expert by any means but this was one of my first what I would call more obscure (at least to the average consumer) beers and it was a wonderful experience. I would highly recommend this beer any time

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2007 16:17:10 | More by meechum

tapman

Illinois

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a pitch black with a 2 finger + head. Excellent carbonation retention in this beer, I'm guessing from the amount of hops used as indicated by the label. Miss the nice cascade found in many stouts, but oh well, pretty darn beautiful.

For the aroma I get green olives (canned), coffee, bitter roasted oatmeal and barley, bitter baker's cocoa. There is a bright hoppiness under the malts and I can definitely taste the cascade hops (also indicated on the ingredients list). The tangy hops mixed with the bitter malts presents a range of flavor combinations not readily found in Russian Imperials or English stouts. Go America!

A really interesting and complex taste. I perceive canned olives once again, almost burnt whole grain toast, dark chocolate consisting of a cocoa ratio of 70% +, and a cinnamon/pepper combination that resembles both and tastes like neither, and coffee (though not espresso as is popular these days). I realize the roasted barley and the oats (though I get more barley than oat which I kinda like as oats are sometimes too astringently bitter for my personal taste), cascade hops, and underneath a bevy of different malts (crystal and chocolate, though to varying degrees).

Mouthfeel is perfect, or as close as I've experienced. Hops give this brew excellent carbonation retention while thickening the beer enough to be velvety smooth. I also think that there is more roasted barley than oats in this one and if so, the malts contribute a much thinner body than usual for a heavy stout, which is balanced nicely by the hops. If there were more oats (keeping in mind this is my estimation) the mouthfeel would have been overwhelmingly syrupy.

A highly drinkable stout! I think what throws people off is the hoppiness which is unexpected in a stout. What these people aren't noticing is that this is an American Stout, so it makes sense for it to be different. I've had other cascade-hopped stouts (by Rock Bottom in Palos Park, Illinois and Goose Island in Chicago, Illinois) and this is by far the best. Its unexpected and balanced well. This brew gets so much better as it warms up so please try not to gulp it all down to hastily. A stout to make even the most earnest liberal climb on their roof and shout, "Go America!"

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2008 03:30:18 | More by tapman

erosier

Connecticut

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Black body with a very large and thick tan colored head. It has a very sweet roasted malt aroma with hints of hops and some chocolate, toffee and some coffee flavors as well. The taste delivers just that. It tastes of roasted malts along with a litte hop bitterness to balance out the sweetness of the stout which is followed by subtly sweet tastes of chocolate, toffee, and coffee. The moutfeel is excellent. It has a velvety smooth mouthfeel with the right amount of carbonation for this beer. It is an extremely drinkable beer and I would reccommend this one to anyone looking to taste how a stout should be made.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2008 14:42:47 | More by erosier

knoxtennessee

Tennessee

4.78/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Like most Rogues Ive had on tap my only complaint is the lack of carbonation.

The aroma is stunning. It has so many layers. Chocolate, coffee, citrus, melon, a hint of yeasty bready goodness, just to name a few.

The taste is possibly even more complex. I have this one anywhere from one to three times a week at my local taproom and it seems to vary a little with every keg. Most interesting of recent was the aftertaste of honeydew and a bit more roasted dryness in the finish. Lots of green grapefruity hops, cocoa, coffee, and sweet bread.

Obviously it's solid black.

It's nice and heavy in the mouth, on the pleasant side of sweet, not a lot of carbonation, but with a beer this heavy you don't want to many bubbles lest you get prematurly blotted. It has a long finish that you taste well into the night, even if you drink other beers after it.

I tend to get full after about two pints, but I can usually squeeze in a third.

Serving type: on-tap

03-23-2010 19:41:00 | More by knoxtennessee

DrDocRudge

Florida

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

The beer smells good, but can't match the marvelous toffee, chocolate and coffee flavors that emerge. Suitable for both bar drinking or as a dessert. Another masterwork from Rogue.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2001 13:18:50 | More by DrDocRudge

nklatt

Minnesota

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Awww yeeah; this is the good, good stuff.

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2001 10:32:30 | More by nklatt

aracauna

Georgia

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Oh my gosh, this was a good beer. I'm a huge stout fan to start with, but this is a great stout. The appearance was great. It was like a big black mass topped by a lightly colored chocolate milkshake. The head was very creamy, especially considering it wasn't nitrous dispensed. Allergy season is kicking in right now so I couldn't get much out of the smell, but what I did get was nice. The taste is great, a little more roasted/burned bitterness than most of the other stouts I've tried, but it was backed up by a full, rich flavor. Combined with the mouthfeel it tasted like a drinking a glass of thin chocolate milk with a good bit less lactic sweetness (although I may have picked up some of that) and a healthy shot of dark chocolate espresso. This beer would be frightening if nitrous dispensed.

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2002 09:30:23 | More by aracauna

Loki

North Carolina

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I feel compelled to write a poem in honor of the great bard and namesake of this beautiful brew. But Alas I am neither the poet, nor the writer that legendary bard was, so I shall keep it simple in my review.

This Rogue casts forth darkness from the bottle that would conceal any Roguish behavior like a moonless, cloud covered night. The only light that shall pass through this dark cavern passes through the caramel colored thick, creamy head that is riddled with craters and caves.

A bouquet of burnt caramel and roasted malt come forth while aromas of coffee, chocolate, and light floral hops steal through and will pass unobserved unless a cautious guard is in place. Remember we are dealing with a Rogue in the truest sense that will try to beguile you at every turn.

With the taste this Rogue turns on a smoothness designed to lull you into a comfort and easiness around this brew. But beware for to much of anything can be dangerous, especially with a rascal like this Stout. Like many of the legendary Bard?s tales, this Stout starts with a semi-sweetness that conceals a bitterness to come. Smooth throughout, with no plot holes or disappointments this Rogue continues with flavors of coffee, chocolate, bitter hops, and a dryness that continues into more hop fashioned bitterness.

This is a truly legendary brew and well deserving of its name. The Great Bard would be proud that his Rogue bears his name.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2003 06:54:44 | More by Loki

dgallina

Georgia

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

650ml bottle

Pours a nearly-solid syrupy black with creamy tan head and light to moderate lace. The aroma is sweet toasted coffee and carmel malts with some underlying hop flower sharpness. Flavor starts with caramel malts which develop into very deep burnt bread with fairly restrained balancing hop finish. Leaves a *very* long bitter chocolate and burnt toast after-taste. Extremely clean and appetizing flavor. Chewy, creamy, and substantial medium-heavy body, yet very clean and drinkable.

I found the bottled version significantly more interesting than what I've tried on-tap. The draft is smoother and creamier in body, but the bottled has more robust flavor and smell and better overall balance IMHO.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2004 04:06:00 | More by dgallina

kkipple

South Carolina

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Ahh, Shakespeare Stout. My favorite of all stouts. Why, you ask? This is a beer that proves that less really can be more. This beer, for me, is one that all other American stouts are measured against.

Shakespeare Stout is the color of midnight with a small, everlasting tan head that contrasts brilliantly with the beer below. I drank a 22oz bomber out of a large pint glass and the head never faltered in close to an hour. Amazing, really.

Smell is subdued; nothing fancy here. Mild chocolate, espresso, malt, maybe some honey. Not nearly as aromatic as some other Rogue beers.

On first sip, a tingly bite leaps into your mouth and fades into intense roasted malt, coffee and cocoa flavors. Marvelous mouthfeel -- rich and smooth. This one actually made my mouth water after the first taste. That, my friends, is a good beer. The aftertaste lasts a long while, daring you to fill your mouth again. This stout is close to perfection in my book. My main beef is that isn't sold in 6-packs.

This is a classic stout. Not overly complex, no gimmicks, no weird additions. Simply fresh, delightful taste. Balance in a bottle. Highest recommendation.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2006 03:09:10 | More by kkipple

jward

Pennsylvania

4.83/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This is an exceptionally well-balanced stout -- simply delicious. Shakespeare Stout pours black, like a well-seasoned skillet, with a luscious mocha-brown head. The nose is dark and woodsy, with elements of dark chocolate, rum and, as Riggo has observed, olive (or even olive oil). The flavor profile is, I'll say it again, just exceptionally well-balanced. There are notes of espresso, oats, hops, chocolate and perhaps wild berries, but no single flavor dominates. The mouthfeel is robust, but not heavy, nicely balanced by a surprisingly crisp carbonatation and dry finish. (Even the bottle is great, with a dangerously well-dressed 'rogue' holding up a frothy mug of beer.)

With its subtle flavor, at least for the style, this isn't the biggest stout around and it's not going to assault or overwhelm your tastebuds. But that's just fine by me. In my judgment, this is one of the best beers produced in the U.S.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2003 16:06:19 | More by jward

noclue

Michigan

4.83/5  rDev +15.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Serving type: 22oz. Bomber served in a 16oz shaker.

Appearance: I had to force a head with a second pour. It was probably not worth the effort either, because it yielded a short, quickly dissipating, creamy tan head. It did leave a nice coat of lacing on my glass though.

Smell: My sniffer is happy! Roasted malts, chocolate, and floral hops aroma.

Taste: Wow! extremely smooth. Different from what I had expected. Bittersweet chocolate, roasted malt, and coffee, with some earthy undertones. Harsh hoppy bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Full-bodied, dry bitter finish.

Drinkability/Overall: Surprisingly smooth and well balanced. This is the epitome of American Stouts!

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2004 02:53:28 | More by noclue