Abstrakt AB:13
BrewDog

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From:
BrewDog
 
Scotland, United Kingdom
Style:
American Imperial Stout
ABV:
11.3%
Score:
89
Avg:
4.01 | pDev: 8.98%
Reviews:
6
Ratings:
19
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 23, 2022
Added:
May 29, 2013
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  6
The latest release in our Abstrakt series. Aged for over 14 months in barrels, AB:13 is an 11.3% Cherry Imperial Stout aged in ex Sherry whisky barrels. Cherry & Sherry, the recipe was devised by our production manager Nikola and is based on the classic German Schwarzlwald dessert. This is very, very special. Pretty much all of our team have been blown away by this oak aged beer as it rattled off our bottling line.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.95/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Sample from bottle at BrewDog tasting, Stavanger. Pitch black colour, low tan head. Very nice aroma, besides the expected roasty notes I get cigar tobacco, sherry and cherries. Roasty flavour, moderate notes of sherry, whisky, oak and cherries. Very enjoyable.
Jan 23, 2022
Photo of flyingpig
Reviewed by flyingpig from Scotland

3.62/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
375ml bottle from Brewdog.com (£10):
This one was a very strong & boozy beer from the start with a tonne of alcohol showing & a little sweetness further on from the dark fruits, molasses & vanilla. It's a beer to take your time with & sip rather than rush through it given the strength & the age of the beer, although it holds up quite well for a bottle that's been sitting in my attic for the best part of five years. It's a thick & chewy, full-bodied beer that I'm glad I've finally tried but it was just that little bit too strong for my liking so I doubt I'd have picked it up again had it been a regular from Brewdog & it doesn't quite hit the heights of either of the previous two Abstrakt beers I've tried.
Jun 23, 2018
Photo of StJamesGate
Reviewed by StJamesGate from New York

4.06/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Purple tan ring over coal black. 4
Licorice, barrel, cherry stone and soy. 4.25
Tart up front, cherry cola, chocolate sprinkles, a whisper of root beer, and vanilla barrel to end. 4
Medium and then some, chewy, round. 4

Black forest cake - cherries more than malts. Mellow, but the wood is there. Too small a sample to blow the mind, but solid. 4
Apr 27, 2016
 
Rated: 4.18 by BuckeyeBeers from Ohio

Feb 06, 2016
 
Rated: 3.25 by olradetbalder from Sweden

Dec 04, 2014
 
Rated: 4.31 by Poupae from Thailand

Nov 02, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by zestar from California

Oct 30, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by spycow from Illinois

Oct 12, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by innominat from Ireland

Jul 12, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by ari32 from Georgia

May 02, 2014
Photo of lacqueredmouse
Reviewed by lacqueredmouse from Australia

4.06/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
375ml green bottle purchased directly from the brewery. Shared with Rich.

Pours a silky and intense black-brown, with a very fine and somewhat insipient head that lazes about on the top of the glass like a fine, aristocratic ring. No carbonation, but that which supports the ring, in a sort of bourgeoisie status quo. Slight reddish tinge, throughout from giving a suggestion of colour to the body, to providing a red-earth quality to the head. It does look intense, and pretty impressive.

Nose is rich and ripe, with a big roasted character that always stays supple and wobbly with a pulled-back elasticity: like stout jelly that hints at fruit characters behind the mask. The cherries (which I know are there) are muted, but present, providing a strange pliantness to the beer. It's interesting.

Taste is good. Here, it's a little more understandable, with a big, rich chocolate and roast Impy stout brashness that is made approachable by the cherry character which ropes in the harshness, caressing it with a supple fruity and slightly tart sweetness. There's not much hint of chocolate except what you might get from an exceedingly high cocoa content: it gives it a brash bitter edge, but doesn't provide much of the supple sweetness.

Feel is smooth and pleasant: it feels light, but this works in pleasant complaisance with the cherry character.

Overall? I'm pretty happy with this. It has class, and approachability, but skews it into strange directions. This is a tasty, intense and strange brew, that dances in the bizarre way the way that an Abstrakt beer should.
Oct 05, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by Brewer1980 from Scotland

Oct 03, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by hulchris from Greece

Sep 21, 2013
Photo of GJ40
Reviewed by GJ40 from North Carolina

4.27/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Sampled from a 375ml bottle from a trade in London. Bottled on 15/03/13 (March).

A - Deep, dark black with a moderate tan head. It sticks to the glass nicely.

S - Varied and deep with sherry, chocolate, molasses, oak and coffee.

T - Caramel, coffee, cherry and wood. There's a residual sweetness in the finish. It's rich and complex yet mellow and smooth. The cherry comes out more and more as it warms. The alcohol does too.

M - A surprisingly light and airy feel without coming across as too thin. A well behaved carbonation.

O - Enjoyable and interesting. I'd like to try this with some age on it.
Aug 22, 2013
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

4.02/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Bottle from Etre Gourmet. Served in a snifter at Todd's place.

A - Dark tan foam that lingers, leaving behind splotches of lace. Very dark brown body that's largely opaque.

S - Somewhat buttery, with dark chocolate, roasted malts, oaky vanilla, and a bit of cherry pie. Quite sweet, with minimal Sherry character, and well-hidden alcohol.

T - The taste has less of a buttery character to it, although this is still vaguely buttercream-esque. There's only faint barrel character here, but rather loads of chocolate cake, with some pie crust and vanilla sweetness. Cherry is faint as well, and is masked by dark fruits and other sweet flavors.

M - Medium-full body, creamy texture, pleasant medium carbonation, chewy, with a pleasantly dry finish. Minimal alcohol presence.

D - The barrel-aging seems very faint, and I was surprised to see this was aged over 14 months. The cherry flavors are also lost amidst the intensely rich sweetness. Not sure if the buttery note is an 'off' flavor or just an English characteristic, but it's not offensive. One of BrewDog's better efforts, but I was disappointed by the lack of advertised flavors.
Aug 12, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by pixieskid from Germany

Jul 31, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by DoubleJ from Wisconsin

Jul 01, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by Kirk from England

Jun 22, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by aslamm75 from Indiana

Jun 12, 2013
Abstrakt AB:13 from BrewDog
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 19 ratings