Tenaya Creek Imperial Stout - Tenaya Creek Brewery

mattcrill

Ohio

4.6/5  rDev +18.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Aroma: Lovely dark roasted malt notes up front. Earthy and peppery hop notes that marry well with the dark roasted grain character. A bit smokey but understated.

Appearance: Jet black with a pancake batter-like head. Head retention is good and appears still in the glass.

Flavor: Follows the aroma. Big malt character with lots of dry cocoa powder and burnt creamed coffee notes. Espresso rounds out the flavor and it's balanced off by some earthy firm hop bitterness and lingering caramel notes. Balance is nearly even giving a slight edge to the bitter hop and dark grain flavors. Finish is clean and dry.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with medium carbonation. Slightly creamy and a little bit of an acrid bite. Not unpleasant or unexpected. Just gives it a little character.

Overall impression: Wow! I'm impressed. This is a new one for me and I'm glad to see it in Central OH. Nicely done. A nice treat on a hot Memorial Day weekend.

Serving type: bottle

05-27-2012 19:18:27 | More by mattcrill

superspak

Michigan

4.23/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled on 12/14/2011. Pours pitch black color with a nice 1 finger dense khaki head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of big dark chocolate, caramel, roasted malt, toffee, coffee, biscuit, nuttiness, toast, and light dark fruitiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance, strength, and complexity of roasted flavors. Taste of dark chocolate, espresso, cocoa, roasted malt, caramel, toast, nuttiness, toffee, brown sugar, roasted coffee, and slight dark fruits. Fair amount of coffee bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of dark chocolate, cocoa, espresso, roasted malt, caramel, toffee, toast, nuttiness, coffee, and slight dark fruits on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic flavor balance, complexity, and robustness; with zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and fairly full bodied; with a very creamy and fairly slick mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with hardly any warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a highly excellent imperial stout. Excellent balance and robustness of roasted and dark malty flavors; and very smooth to sip on. A highly enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2013 05:31:12 | More by superspak

rangerman21

Nevada

4.19/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured from a bomber dated 12/12/12

Appearance- Dark, light has a hard time finding its way through the beer. The head is light brown.

Smell- Dark malts and a slight hint of booze.

Taste- Dark malts with a bitter hop finish. Bitter throughout, booze not overpowering

Mouthfeel- Chewy and smooth. Slightly more carbonated than some other Imperial stouts I've tried.

Overall- A robust brew that looks, smells and tastes like I would want an imperial stout to taste. The booze is not overpowering in the flavor, which is nice. I would definitely get this beer again.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 23:46:18 | More by rangerman21

mactrail

California

4.1/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This is a big, foamy brew with piles of carbonation. Big head and a sudsy mouthful. Dark brown color in the Duvel glass. Aromas of grainy malt and caramel.

Rich and spicy with a big, deep flavor. What is appealing about this one is the less sweet character with the nutty, edgy taste. Full malt flavor with a dark roasted taste, but more nutty than sweet. This has a grainy flavor that is more like really good bread with a touch of the burnt sugar. Some licorice taste and a hot sensation of alcohol. Not totally dry, but a great balance of malty sweetness with some hoppy bitterness.

The best of the several Tenaya Creek brews I've had and one worth seeking out. A great example of an American-style big stout. From the 22 oz bottle bought at Whole Foods in Chandler. My only criticism: lose the wax dip, dudes.

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2013 05:31:11 | More by mactrail

bunnyhustle

Illinois

4.03/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a growler on my initial visit here which including a great tour of the brewery by head brewmaster, Anthony. Decided to take home this beast and give it a shot as the sample impressed me. Pours black and thick, dark brown edging but even when held to light, the beers stops it all, this is a dark beer. Small, mocha colored head with somewhat weak retention. Smell was a little weak at first but as it warms you notice some chocolate, dark fruit, caramel, and alcohol. Taste is good. Its pretty much what you'd expect from an Impy Stout but seemed to be a heavier coffee like taste, dark toasted malt and chocolate present as well. Nice warming effect as it goes down and leaves a plesant dark chocolate after taste. Mouthfeel is full and thick, great example for this style. Overall a very good beer. Its got some kick to it but a great slow-sipper and enjoy at warmer temps to get everything out of this one.

Serving type: growler

01-09-2008 23:59:32 | More by bunnyhustle

UncleJimbo

Massachusetts

3.98/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Sampled on-tap at the brewpub.

This Imperial Stout was very dark (opaque) black with very thin foam (though some brown foam could be coaxed). The smell was dark malt with some grain and chocolate notes; as it warmed, some alcohol could also be noted. The taste was rich and malty with flavors of unsweetened chocolate, caramel, molasses, and dried fruit (especially in the finish). The mouthfeel was smooth with full body and low carbonation. It was dry overall with a dry, malty finish. This was a good, easy drinking imperial stout.

Serving type: on-tap

12-22-2007 18:35:45 | More by UncleJimbo

UCLABrewN84

California

3.93/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to Panny for sharing this one at Benny’s tasting.

Bottled 12/14/11.

Pours an almost opaque super dark brown with a foamy khaki head that settles to an oily film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt, cocoa, and dark fruits. Taste is much the same with a medium roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty and quite smooth.

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2012 01:35:18 | More by UCLABrewN84

ONUMello

Ohio

3.83/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I realize wax looks nice, but it made the crown cap quite difficult to remove... anyway...
22oz bottle with a 'bottled on' date of 12/14/11 poured into a pint glass
A: This is almost pitch black in color with a latte-colored one-fingered head
S: Coffee, roasted malt and some cocoa; quite muted
T: Again tons of coffee, roasted malts, some bitter cocoa, and I agree with the burnt toast finish
M: Medium-bodied, fairly smooth, a pleasant bitterness
O: I'm going to have to keep my eye out for more from Tenaya Creek as both of the beers I've had from them have been enjoyable, this is no exception.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 21:38:00 | More by ONUMello

womencantsail

California

3.78/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Black in color with a thin tan head. Roasted malts rule the aroma. Coffee, dark chocolate, and mild ash along with some cocoa powder and a hint of molasses to provide some sweetness. The flavor is also heavily roasted. Light ash, plenty of coffee, and a touch of licorice. Lots of bitter dark chocolate, light molasses and toffee sweetness. A touch of burnt toast and bitterness on the finish.

Serving type: bottle

08-13-2012 03:31:48 | More by womencantsail

tonistruth

Nevada

3.33/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

on tap @ Freakin Frog in Las Vegas, NV

A- 1 finger silky tan heads holds pretty well above a black brew, silk screens of tan lace on side of glass

S- currants, raisins, roasted malts, caramel

T- roasted/burnt malts and chocolate give way to sweet dark fruit flavors, some licorice, just a bit of alcohol at finish with a milkshake sweet aftertaste

M- creamy medium body with hints of heat at finish

D- offers some complexity to this interpretation of a imperial stout, with the fruit flavors fells like it has a Belgian twist, interesting but not doing it for me

Serving type: on-tap

12-18-2007 01:16:18 | More by tonistruth

charlzm

California

3.28/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Consumed on draft at brewery, 12/30/07.

Very dark brown with a thin ring of foam. Oddly, no aroma I could detect, though it was in a taster glass. Creamy mouthfeel. Bitter, roasted chocolate and smooth coffee. No alcohol burn or taste. Lightly bitter finish.

Not as big as I expected from an imperial stout, but certainly not bad at all.

Serving type: on-tap

03-06-2008 04:55:22 | More by charlzm

JDV

Texas

3.15/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Rich black pour with a creamy beige head from the nitro pour. Smell is dark roasty malt. Actually has some body to it! Although it could be richer, it was overly thin, and had a nice roasty coffee flavor to it. Hint of alcohol, however that didn't help, but didn't kill it either. Some bitterness in the finish and all around their best beer that I've tried. Worth a try.

Serving type: on-tap

03-15-2008 19:38:21 | More by JDV