Shipyard Blue Fin Stout - Shipyard Brewing Co.

beardedterror

Iowa

2.08/5  rDev -41.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 2

Poured into stout glass, served at approximately 55 degrees Farenheit:

A - Dark brown, nearly black color with 1/2 finger light tan head which disappears quickly, but leaves good lacing on glass.

S - Not much, especially for a stout. Slight toasted grain smell and a decent bit of smoke. Very slight caramel flavors after several minutes of smelling. No discernible hop aromas.

T - Dirt is the first impression I get. Not a pleasant flavor. Smoke is very high. Smoke from the front of the palate through the late finish, which could be due to high roasted barley content. Only flavor other than smoke is a huge buttery flavor. Very unpleasant. Batch could have been fermented too hot. Slight, but noticeable amount of bitterness, on par with style.

M - Creamy feeling. Slightly chewy. Sadly, best feature of the beer.

O - Very disappointing, as stouts are my favorite and I've heard good things about this beer. Perhaps a bad batch or just very old? I will give this one more shot (from a different retailer) in the future. Flavor was severely lacking in complexity for a stout. Smoke and butter were the only two things I got from this. It was difficult to finish.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2012 01:29:51 | More by beardedterror

dtivp

West Virginia

3.35/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured a dark brown with a one finger medium tan head that faded quickly into a thin cap with very little lacing.

Aroma of roasted malt, sweet chocolate and dark fruit, not the strong toasty bitterness I like with a stout.

Taste of roasted malt, coffee and a hint of hops, very little if any sweetness that I noticed in the aroma.

Mouth Feel was medium body, very light carbonation, smooth, not very crisp or bitter.

Overall this is an average stout, a little thin and lacks that nice bite you get from a stout.

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2012 20:32:16 | More by dtivp

leokbelo

Florida

3.9/5  rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a Pint glass, deep blackness, with a coffee like foamy head.
Sweet, roasted coffee, with hints of fruits and dark chocolate both on the nose and on the palate.
Hops are quite present, without overwhelming the palate.
A fine stout, medium bodied and full of flavor.
Recommended to any Stout aficionados!

Serving type: bottle

03-04-2012 01:52:36 | More by leokbelo

zeff80

Missouri

3.58/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - Poured out an opaque, jet black color with a small, tan head of bubbly foam. It left thin rings of sticky lace on the glass.

S - It smelled roasty with chocolate and some toffee notes.

T - It tasted of flaked oats with roasty malt. Subtle chocolate and toffee flavors, too.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied stout with a very dry finish.

O - This hits the style very well. It would make a nice sessionable stout.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2012 20:50:52 | More by zeff80

UCLABrewN84

California

3.13/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Best by 5/2012.

Pours an opaque black with a 1 inch foamy dark khaki head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Tiny streaks of lace form on the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt and some subtle cocoa and dark fruit aromas. Taste is of dark roasted malt with some minor cocoa powder flavor. There is a mild roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a high level of carbonation that is a bit too much in my opinion. Overall, this is a pretty average stout with an emphasis on roasty malt without any real balance.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2012 05:54:23 | More by UCLABrewN84

biegaman

Ontario (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Blue Fin Stout is actually black - utterly, entirely black. Off the pour: black. The trim of its base: black. Its complexion against the afternoon sun: black. Even its surface: a barren, empty black. Without even the slightest carbonation I think you'd need night-vision goggles to derive any kind of aesthetic interest.

The aroma smells of roasted malts and a hefty dosage of sweetened milk chocolate. It is not a heavy-hitting aroma by any means, but it gives the air of a tar-y, viscous graininess so thick that it might just get stuck between your teeth. While it's a little shy of 'coffee' as far as its strength and roast, that's definitely the direction we're headed.

Drinking Blue Fin Stout is like chowing down on some chunky, chewy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies (and washing them down with a splash of coffee and maybe a swig of tobacco juice). Half way through the bottle the mouth feels permanently coated in a smoky bitter astringency, as if each sip had been laced with tiny little coffee grind shavings.

Blue Fin is a classic Irish-style stout in every regard but one (err, four): the Warrior, Cascade, Tettnang and Goldings hops are all plainly noticeable and impart in all aspects of the beer - the bouquet, the flavor, the mouthfeel - a little extra leafy, flowery, lightly spicy character. It doesn't stand out too much given all the roasty chocolate notes, but it's there.

An Irish stout ought to be flavorful, quaffable and offer good value; Blue Fin Stout could be described by all of those things. I could see myself buying a fair bit of this if I were a New England resident. Their products may not be earth-shattering but Shipyard offers consistency and quality which, for me, both make compelling reasons to support them.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2012 20:19:55 | More by biegaman

hopfacebrew

Colorado

2.65/5  rDev -26%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

On nitro tap at Vine Street Pub for Stout Month 2011. The beer was served in an 8oz milkshake pilsner glass.

A - A very very dark brown color, though not quite black. Amber/brown on the edges. A thin 1/4" creamy tan nitro head with little retention and almost no lacing.

S - A light sweet chocolate roasted malt character on the nose. Pretty average for an Irish Dry Stout.

T/M - The beer from the get go tastes light and thin and watery. Very little roasted malt character on the front. The middle brings a mild bitterness. The beer finishes very light and watery with a hint of roasted malt. Lightly carbonated and light/medium bodied.

D - Meh. A coworker of mine rejected it back to the server.

Overall, I was extremely disappointed in this beer. My 2 co-workers who also tried it said the same thing: thin, water, and reminded us of fish! Not recommended, I will not be back. Maybe we got a bad batch but this was not pleasant.

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: nitro-tap

Reviewed on: 02-11-2011 20:09:33

Serving type: nitro-tap

01-27-2012 15:10:21 | More by hopfacebrew

AnIrishCroi

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Black body with medium brown fluffy head. High initial carbonation.

S: Toasted malts, slight smell of coffee.

T: Burnt toast. Coffee flavored. Thin taste, almost watered down.

M: Light, watery. Not in line with what I expected from a stout.

O: Poured from bottle to stein, expecting a heavy flavor and mouthfeel. Might as well poured into a Pilsner glass and treated it as such. Enjoyable beer, easy to drink, just wished it had some more body and flavor.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 02:09:21 | More by AnIrishCroi

Dope

Massachusetts

3.38/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Dark brown, almost black pour. Ridiculous fluffy brown head. Good retention.

S: Mild roasted malt. Touch of chocolate. A bit sweet.

T: A bit of water followed by a bitter hit of char, roasted malt and coffee. Not much else too it. A little dry in the aftertaste.

M: Pretty watery.

O: Great appearance and decent smell had my hopes up but this beer is pretty plain. Not horrible but basically tastes like guinness without the creaminess.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2011 03:07:40 | More by Dope

bigdeuce

Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev +14%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Very nice pour with a soft light brown head and a deep, robust, almost completely opaque color. Chocolatey notes on the nose. Nice toasty malt with a smokey-like character also present on the nose. Medium body with an outstanding charring cocoa-like smokiness. Very good beer. Low alcohol content make this easily a great session brew. Roasty warm alcohol feeling to it. A great winter beer, actually and may be Shipyard's best. This is one beer that proves ABV does not make or break a beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2011 00:20:13 | More by bigdeuce

Pintofbrown

Iowa

3.13/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

This one was poured into a pint glass.

Appearance- The completely black body is crowned by a beige film that disappears pretty quickly. There is no lace on the side of the glass.

Smell- Sweet is the first sense I get from this stout, like molasses or dark fruit. There is a little bit of roast, but it is buried.

Taste- There is a bit of coffee roast at the beginning, but it shifts forcibly into char and a slightly caustic finish. Whatever sweetness may have been in the nose is no where to be found in the drink. And the roast gets pretty heavy handed on the palate.

Mouth feel- This is far too thin and even a little fizzy. These are not qualities that generally make for a good stout experience. Especially when the palate is already full on char and some astringency.

Overall- This one started out okay, but as soon as it hits your lips, it becomes a bit of a let down. It is like they have a base for a stout in here, but then did not finish it by working the carbonation or putting any good malt or flavoring in with it.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2011 22:51:00 | More by Pintofbrown

morebeergood

Massachusetts

3.48/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I purchased a bomber a while ago in Maine, and opened it tonight. Served in a Brooklyn Brewery stemmed glass. Dark brown colored body. Nice tan head forms, but faded fast. All that was left was a white circle of foam around the edges of the glass. Smell was appealing, with good notes of highly roasted coffee. Taste was not bad, but I've had better. Seemed like a lot of the flavors didn't meld well; everything sorta seemed jumbled. The roasted coffee flavor was too hidden by that odd sweetness. It also became cloying on my palate. Plus, I got an unusual buttery flavor from this beer at the finish. Lastly, this beer was just a bit too thin on the body. Blue Fin is a decent stout, but I could have remembered liking it more in the past. Now, not so much.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2011 05:29:42 | More by morebeergood

kangarooAdam59

Pennsylvania

3.61/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

In a pint glass:

A: black colored body with a finger of light brown head

S: light bitter chocolate, coffee with some sweet roasted malts

T: sweet through previously mentioned flavors, slightly roasty

M: medium, fairly sessionable, dry bitter aftertaste and finish

O: good for the style and good for me, good Black & Tan with the Pumpkinhead

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2011 00:46:41 | More by kangarooAdam59

SickGnar

Pennsylvania

3.7/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Jet black and just barely misses opaque. Okay size tan head of foam that settles to a ring that stays but does not deposit much lace.

S: Nice friendly roasty nose with good heft. Cocoa leaning a bit more chocolate than bitter sweet cocoa. Molasses and super dark toffee sweetness with some malty grain in the background and some diacetyl as well. Some fruity esters dance at the margins. Barely there hints of coffee and really dark roast. No hops.

T: Quite a bit more roasty on the palate. More postum / chicory than real coffee up front, but the end takes on notes of almost bitter dark, dark roast – sort of Turkish coffee. Molasses sweetness takes on a bit of a sharp sort of minerally edge on the backend. Some dark breadcrusty malts, but it could use more to give some depth to the middle and better show off the rish roasty aspects. As the dark roast lingers in the finish it gets a little bit earthy, a little bit woody (hinting at char), and develops just a hint of an acrid edge.

M: A tad thin, even for a low gravity dry stout. Body is not helped any by the coarse textured carbonation. Drying from roastiness. Creamier CO2 and just a smidge more body and chew would push this beyond merely fair.

D: Very solid stout. Nice nose, good flavor, decent mouthfeel, and it looks okay too. Stands up nicely against the standard benchmarks. I bet it shines on a nitro-tap.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2011 00:10:10 | More by SickGnar

SDtastentune

California

4/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Dark dark and has a nice little brown head upon poring, works into a nice ring. Some good lacing.

S - Lighter coffee and sweet dark chocolate mixed in. Some sweeter ting as well.

T - Taste is a good balance between rich chocolate and molasses mixed in with some coffee notes, Finishes clean and thinner but great aftertaste.

M - Lighter body with some nice medium no prickly carbonation.

O - Overall this a great stout, not bad. Easy to drink on a cold night, and enjoy with some steak or bbq. Can be used as a marinating or beer batter as well!

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2011 01:33:55 | More by SDtastentune

donovanneb

California

2.23/5  rDev -37.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

With all the “big” stouts out there right now, this one really falls short as far as overall flavor and delivery. Appearance is lighter than most stouts and the taste follows the coloring. It lacked in depth, smell and mouthfeel. Trying to let it stand on its own, I couldn’t really draw anything out of it. There was nothing offensive about it, but basically felt watered down.

With all the killer stouts out there right now, I feel like this beer needs to step it up in order for me to try it again.

Serving type: bottle

10-17-2011 22:33:05 | More by donovanneb

Bendurgin

Maine

2.15/5  rDev -39.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Andy shared this one. Thanks. Poured into a pint glass. Pours black with no head. Just looks kind of dull.

The aroma is sweet and fruity. Thanks for using the same yeast everytime Shipyard. I appreciate it. Sweet and fruity with a little bit of coffee in the aroma. Sweet mollasses, which has been a good thing in the past but that and the yeast working together are just not good.

The body is light and the carbonation is soft. Overall, this smells and taste like shipyard. Which in my expirience i just bad.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 01:21:30 | More by Bendurgin

andrewinski1

Maine

2.48/5  rDev -30.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Opened this because I need an extra bottle for my homebrew. Screw top cap. Curses! Poured into a pint glass. The color is dark amber/black. There is a small quarter inch head; not much lacing.

The aroma is full of molasses cookie, with maybe a little bit of burnt rubber.

The taste is sweet molasses. This is mostly just sweet malt followed by a yeasty caramel finish.

The body is medium and the carbonation medium.

This is a bit of a disappointment. I guess I like it better on nitro-tap.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 01:18:43 | More by andrewinski1

pants678

California

2.75/5  rDev -23.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 5

Black, the head's brown and not beige.

It's got that marshmellow smell, more coffee there than anything.

Not much going on here, perhaps it's a bad bottle. Roasted malts/barely stand out, some crisp hops on the finish. Slightly dark chocolatey but so weak. Flavors are tuned up toward the middle, still they're not definite.

Seems more carbonated than it actually is due to the real subtlety in flavoring. I'd rather this than motor-oil-thick, seems closer to the porter.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2011 08:50:28 | More by pants678

rwathree

Iowa

3.93/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12oz into nonic pint

A: on the plus side, I'm a sucker for pitch-black beers, and this is definitely that. On the minus, I want those beers to have good head retention for contrast, which this lacks. In fact it doesn't yield much to begin with, although the lacing is decent.

S: huge mocha notes up front, appealingly sweet. Nothing else, really...maybe a hint of anise. Not complex, but nice.

T: bittersweet chocolate and anise, with strong roasted coffee in the finish.

M: good carbonation, but a little light-bodied. Coffee flavors linger nicely.

This was a pleasant surprise. After I recently had Shipyard's (bad) Pumpkin Ale, I wasn't expecting much, but this is a solid, very drinkable stout. Nice contrast of sweet aromas and bitter and roasted flavors.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 01:57:46 | More by rwathree

yesyouam

New York

3.3/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Shipyard Blue Fin Stout is a black ale with brown highlights and a brown head that quickly fades to the thin film and leaves decent lacing on the glass. It has an aroma of dark, roasted malt with a hint of sweetness. It's pretty light bodied and a little sharp on the tongue. The finish is dry and a touch chalky. The flavor is very simple: dark roasted malt. It's pretty dry and has a little hint of coffee at the finish. No hop flavor is detected and it doesn't really have any noticeable bitterness, except perhaps at the finish. The roasted flavor lingers. It's simple, roasty and sessionable. This is the kind of beer I like to use when cooking chili.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2011 14:27:11 | More by yesyouam

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

3.88/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked up a growler from the Shipyard in Eliot, ME. Poured into a pint glass, the beer is jet black, with only a thin ring of milk chocolate colored, bubbly head. Aromas are strong, with a heavy roasted coffee base and the slightest hints of bittersweet dark chocolate. Flavors are rich and full, with a heavy, bitter coffee tone overpowering almost everything else. There is a slight nutty and smokey highlight throughout, also. The body is light, dry, and slick, which is perfect for the style. The aftertaste is short-lived, but in the span you get a blast of toasted oats and bitter, dark coffee, with a slightly drying and clean finish. Very tasty and smooth.

Serving type: growler

08-25-2011 21:18:04 | More by GarthDanielson

greenmonstah

New Hampshire

3.48/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A - Nice black color with a finger of light brown head.

S - Bitter chocolate and some coffee. Sweet roasted malts.

T - Bitter chocolate and a dry roast coffee flavor. Roasted malts are slightly sweet. Not much else to it, a bit clean overall. Bitter finish.

M - Medium body, more carbonation than expected, with a drying finish that doesn't dry out quite enough.

O - Overall a decent Irish Dry. Nice beer for Guinness drinkers to try, to get them to enjoy more American craft. Can't say it is much better than that, but iI might prefer it just a bit.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2011 00:31:56 | More by greenmonstah

vfgccp

New York

3.73/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A- Pitch Black color with very slight brown highlights. Head is a little low, but lacing is great. Head is a really nice dark tan color. Great look, very stout-like.

S- A bready sweet malt smell with strong coffee presence. Slight notes of bitter chocolate, but the pure coffee taste overwhelms the palate

T- Up front there is a malty sweetness mixed with a bright acidity. This quickly mellows out to a nice sharp bitterness from a coffee bean and slight bitter coco taste. Finish is mellow and smooth.

M- Has a slight creaminess to the feel, could be detected as light carbonation but does not detract from the overall experience. Overall has a nice coating to the palate, and finishes very mellow and nice.

O- Great drinkability, if lightly bitter and predominantly coffee stouts are your cup-o-tea this is definitely worth taking a try. Great as a slightly warmer sipping stout, or a cold refreshing stout for those dark beer lovers.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2011 01:49:43 | More by vfgccp

smakawhat

Maryland

3.98/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from the bottle into a nonic pint glass.

A very nice super dark midnight body with a foamy light cap the forms nicely. Light tan head in color with nice retention. Dark, ominous looking... looks impressive.

Bouquet is a real nice solid mix. Husky dark grains, and milk chocolate. Solid. Simple just darn good.

Taste should bring the win I am hoping and for the most part does. Texture sort of finishes kind of wet and a little fizzy. Light coffee grains on the finish which is nice that didn't come apparent on the nose. Light milk chocolate taste in the mid palate as well, with dark grain of roast and pleasure.

Overall this is quite enjoyable I would have this again for this style no problem. It might be my favorite Shipyard beer to date.

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2011 02:42:52 | More by smakawhat