Imperial Sweet Stout - Cognac Barrel Aged - Cigar City Brewing

stakem

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A huge amount of gratitude is owed to BA sendsilk for hooking me up with a seemingly endless supply of amazing CCB brews. Poured from a 750ml into a matching Cigar City snifter. The brew appears a solid black color with a dark brown finger of froth across the top. The cap fades leaving some spots of lace sticking to the glass and the head holds around the perimeter of the glass. A light swirl revives a seriously dark brown cap back to the surface that fades leaving a thin film across the top. When held to the light and swirled, hardly any light shines through but what does reveals some dark brown hints around the edges.

The aroma is heavily roasted and almost char and tobacco-like. There is an immediately noticeable amount of fruity cognac quality that comes into play accenting the boozy quality of this. The dark roasted aspects of the aromatics brings out thoughts of coffee and bitter baker's chocolate with almost a hint of earthy leather. As I smell this brew more, a bit of vanilla quality and raw oak emerges. This is a deeply complex and enjoyable smelling brew.

The flavor of this brew is very roasted with a bitterness that is reminiscent of 100% cacao. There are some softer almost milk chocolate notes present that then blend into a fruity booze flavor of cognac. Some roasty earth, leather, tobacco and oak are also there mid palate. This is a very atypical sweet stout in that it is very deceiving in the way the flavors meld together and go between bitter roast, semi-sweet and boozy. The sweet side of this brew really isnt upfront at all, it is actually more bitter upfront and blends into a mild sweetness across the back and into the finsh.

This is a medium to fuller bodied brew with a moderate amount of carbonation. This is a beast of a sweet stout. If you go into this experience expecting a sticky sweet stout, you might be let down as it is quite boozy and bitter. This brew is very reminiscent of the trademark stouts that Cigar City is known for. At times I seemingly forget myself and get reminded of Zhukov with its dark roasty leathery and almost ashy qualities. But the booze reminds me of something more like Hunahpu but without the spices. Dare I say CCB has hit one hell of a homerun with this brew.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2012 00:08:49 | More by stakem

IrishColonial

Virginia

4.25/5  rDev -3.6%

05-23-2013 17:14:04 | More by IrishColonial

fullmetal1381

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

05-21-2013 06:23:35 | More by fullmetal1381

johntfox

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

05-21-2013 01:15:51 | More by johntfox

michaeljstraub

Georgia

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

05-16-2013 19:50:23 | More by michaeljstraub

MatthewPlus

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

05-15-2013 14:37:08 | More by MatthewPlus

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

4.51/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to David for this bottle! Dated 19 SEP 12.
Poured in to cigar city snifter.

A - Poured ink black with a thin layer of dark brown head that immediately reduced to a ring around the edges of the glass.

S - Sweet cognac, charred oak, chocolate covered cherries, roast and a hint of smoke. Very complex.

T - A big cognac presence at first that immediately gives way to charred oak, roast and an amazing chocolate covered cherry flavour. Sweet molasses ans sugary notes throughout. Very sweet overall, as expected. But not too sweet...

M - Medium body; light to moderate carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 01:42:44 | More by TheSevenDuffs

Michigan

Michigan

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

05-11-2013 13:11:35 | More by Michigan

claaark13

Indiana

3.75/5  rDev -15%

05-10-2013 02:15:21 | More by claaark13

Rogorama

Indiana

5/5  rDev +13.4%

05-09-2013 00:49:31 | More by Rogorama

Jeffo

Netherlands

4.45/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from urwithdave. I just can't get enough. Cheers!

From a 750ml into a snifter
Bottled 19 September 2012
Stout on cognac barrels

APPEARANCE: Thick black pour yields a one finger, medium looking, creamy, dark mocha head with very good retention. Very dark and mocha colored head. Looks nice. Thick black body with higher levels of carbonation. Head slowly fades to a splotchy wisp and ring. Touches of wisp and a ring remain leaving no real lacing down the glass. Nice head with a thick, black, Cigar City black body. Nice.

SMELL: Big cognac nose with lots of roasted and chocolaty base stout. Roasted malts, dark, pure chocolate, baker's chocolate, with cognac, vanilla, milk chocolate and toffee. Chocolate covered cherries as well. Really decadent with piles of roasty, chocolaty base stout under a well-integrated cognac barrel. Increadibly complex and lovely. Bold and outstanding.

TASTE: Cognac, lots of roasted and burnt malts with dark, pure baker's chocolate at the swallow. Huge, flavorful aftertaste of charred malts, dark bitter chocolate, coffee, cognac and some sweet vanilla, toffee and milk chocolate. A touch of booze, but well measured. Sweet and bitter, roasted finish lingers with some chocolate covered cherries and vanilla cognac. This is lovely and follows the nose perfectly. The touch high carbonation keeps this from possible perfection.

PALATE: Medium body with higher levels of carbonation. A little light and airy, goes down smooth enough and finishes slightly sticky on the palate. A little burn lingers. Definitely needs to be thicker, fuller and heavier with less carbonation. Too bad, but this is otherwise fantastic. Average at best.

OVERALL: Phenomenal stuff! Everything works so well except the the slightly thin and airy feel on this one. If the feel was fuller and creamier, this would be the best cognac barrel aged beer in the world, and perhaps the best barrel aged stout in the world. Cigar City never ceases to impress the crap out of me. Love this beer. Thanks a lot urwithdave. I could drink these guys and not miss a thing.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2013 19:19:22 | More by Jeffo

beerpirates

Belgium

4.4/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

75 cl bottle poured into my tastingglass

Very thick, dark black pour with caramel colored head,
aroma brought notes of milk chocolate, caramel, toffee, hints of nice booze with cognac, touch of spice but restrained,
Taste is a nice mix of caramel, toffe, milk chocolate, nice coffee beans, hints of cognac, finishing fairly sweet, bitter, dry, with a slight booze warming note but not bad.
This is a realy good stout , i could drink this every day :)

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2013 12:02:56 | More by beerpirates

claspada

New Jersey

4.34/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Pours the same super dark, viscous black oily color (as you get from Hunahpu or Zhukov) with the darkest brown head you will ever see on a beer. The lacing is also super dark brown and oily looking.

Aromas begin with a ton of roasted dark espresso and dark gritty bakers chocolate. Then soon after comes the vinous, slightly boozy fruity cognac and some slightly charred oak.

The tastes bring more of the same with dark malts, more sweet than roasted. Then there is a good dose of cocoa beans, tannic oak and a strong flavor of vinious cognac, luckily, lacking an intense alcohol heat.

The mouthfeel is heavy bodied with moderate carbonation. The finish is relatively dry thanks to the copious oak and vinious cognac notes yet by no means do you not appreciate the sweetness and heft of this beast.

Overall this is a great beer but definitely one that warrants sharing amounts friends. 4-8 ounces of this beer is plenty to enjoy the complexity and more would just destroy your palate for the remainder of the evening. Don't hoard, share.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2013 12:15:26 | More by claspada

pcarney8

Virginia

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

04-12-2013 18:58:06 | More by pcarney8

largadeer

California

4/5  rDev -9.3%

04-12-2013 18:37:06 | More by largadeer

DucTourer

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

04-06-2013 03:45:32 | More by DucTourer

IpeeA

Missouri

4.25/5  rDev -3.6%

04-05-2013 04:22:21 | More by IpeeA

madnismo

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +7.7%

04-03-2013 02:44:48 | More by madnismo

JulianB

South Carolina

4.25/5  rDev -3.6%

04-02-2013 19:23:48 | More by JulianB

JReites

Florida

4.5/5  rDev +2%

04-01-2013 02:16:44 | More by JReites

bonkers

New Jersey

4.44/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I was lucky enough to recieve this in a stout bif, thanks beernads!! I split it into 2 snifters, viscous, jet black pour, thin tan head. Boozey aroma, notes of vanilla. Well balanced brew, sweet, nice cognac notes, vanilla is in there too. Finishes boozey. The beer is thick, light carbonation, sipper. A great beer that I never thought I would be able to try.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 00:07:22 | More by bonkers

nrs207

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev -3.6%

03-31-2013 22:35:12 | More by nrs207

bpk59

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev -3.6%

03-31-2013 02:41:13 | More by bpk59

t0rin0

California

4/5  rDev -9.3%

03-31-2013 01:52:14 | More by t0rin0

iL0VEbeer

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +2%

03-30-2013 21:04:04 | More by iL0VEbeer