Bert's Disqualified Imperial Stout - Wandering Star Brewing Company

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

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

On-tap 3/3/2012 at Track 84, in Warwick, RI served in a tulip glass.

A: The beer is a deep dark black color, with a thin brown head that fades slowly and leaves a thick on the glass.

S: The aroma contains chocolate, roasted malts and a touch of hops.

T: The taste starts out with strong flavors of milk and dark chocolate followed by a hearty roasted malt character. There’s a touch of smokiness in the background. The hops presence is mild but complementary and brings a good balance. The after-taste is bitter-sweet.

M: Crisp and smooth, medium-to-heavy body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: Tasty, goes down very easily, slightly filling, good kick, good representation of style, this is a nice stout to drink for a while.

Serving type: on-tap

04-15-2012 19:30:16 | More by TheManiacalOne

metter98

New York

3.95/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

A: The beer is jet black in color and poured without any head.
S: There are light aromas of dark malts and licorice in the nose.
T: Similar to the smell, the taste has flavors of dark malts and licorice. The licorice flavors seem to become stronger as the beer warms up.
M: It feels full-bodied on the palate with a low to moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This is a good representation of the style. It seems to have a bit more licorice flavors compared to other beers in the style.

Serving type: on-tap

03-13-2012 03:26:24 | More by metter98

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.55/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served on tap at Mugs Alehouse in Brooklyn, NY

A: Pours a jet black with absolutely no head whatsoever. No lacing is observed.

S: The overall aroma of this beer is pretty weak and hard to detect. I get dark roasted malts, licorice/anise, and a subtle presence of alcohol.

T: Starts out very sweet with dark roasted malts and some caramel malts, followed by some licorice/anise notes, and then an interesting subtle smokiness in the finish.

M: Medium bodied with light amounts of carbonation.

O: Slightly too little carbonation and not enough complexity in the flavor combined with the weak nose make this one a beer that I am unlikely to order again - I had high hopes for it because of the other great beers I have had from Wandering Star in the past but was a little disappointed. There is some alcohol presence as well.

Serving type: on-tap

03-12-2012 14:59:16 | More by dbrauneis

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

3.7/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from tap into tulip at Sunset in Boston.
Pours a deep black with tan head.
Bitter roasted bold coffee aroma.
Taste is of bitter coffee and slight chocolate. Slight alcohol flavor.
Overall, its a pretty good imperial stout. Not overly done but it seems very mild to me and lacking any huge footprint on my palate.
I bet this would be a nice bourbon aged...

Serving type: on-tap

02-28-2012 00:22:55 | More by DrinkSlurm

albertjr21

New York

4.05/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Poured into a tulip from a growler filled fresh just hours ago, brew pours a solid black under a thin dark khaki foam.

S: Dark bitter chocolate and a little herbal sweetness seem to fill the aroma for a cooling nasal awakening.

M/T: One of the more obvious chocolate flavorings I've ever sensed in a beer and it is very nicely complemented with a solid hop backbone. Fine flavors of dark intense chocolate and smoky roasted malt linger on the palate long after the finish.

O: Delicious and in the words of the brewery "dangerously drinkable"...

Serving type: growler

02-25-2012 01:27:49 | More by albertjr21

Avantyawn

New York

4.28/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On Tap at Barcade

A: Typical Russian Imperial stout, but with no head at all. Looks a very dark beer with no head.

S: Very sweet malty, coffee, roasted grain

T: Delicious, delicate yet bold. Many nuances of flavor, coffee, chocolate, sweet malt, a bit of hoppy fruit. Awesome.

M: Medium-thick, I usually hate when RIS are a bit "watery" but this works being on the thin side for an RIS. It doesn't have the knock you on your ass thick mouthfeel, goes down very smoothy and easy, but not wimpy. I enjoyed the feel of this. Delicate.

O: Overall, I very much enjoyed this beer and thought it was excellent. I'd highly recommend this beer if you ever see it available on tap. Well done!

Serving type: on-tap

02-21-2012 06:21:41 | More by Avantyawn

DoubleSimcoe

New York

4.03/5  rDev +2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bert's on tap at Blind Tiger, served in a pint.

Appearance: Classic Imperial Stout looks, an impenetrable black with auburn overtones when swirling. Comes with a perfect one-finger head that dies almost right away, leaving no lace or trace.

Smell: Mild but steady, some coffee, roastiness, sugar-sweetness and a tad of vanilla.

Taste: Beautiful! Roasty, with a bitter end. Cold-brewed coffee all around. Hoppy-tingly feeling at the end of the sip.

Mouthfeel: Great for the style- almost full body, medium-to-full flavor and carbonation. But the best is the creaminess and richness of the taste. Sticky, chewy, oily... all that's good in an Imperial Stout. Chocolaty too!

Overall: Pleasantly surprised by this small brewery, this is a very good brew. Let it warm a little.

Serving type: on-tap

10-13-2011 17:45:00 | More by DoubleSimcoe

r0nyn

New York

4.22/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into an 8oz tasting glass at the Pony Bar in NYC.

Dark, dark brown and viscous looking, there isn't much of a head on this imperial stout, but I attribute that to the shorter glassware. What little carbonation there is at the top forms a thin ring around the perimeter of the beer, with just a hint of some leg-action swirling around the middle. Sticky lacing coats the inside of the glass. Smell is plenty roasty, with lots of chocolate malts making the nose quite inviting. There's some definite coffee nuance in there as well. Light bit of hoppiness. Pretty enticing!

Taste is more of the same from the nose, with roasted malts and bittersweet dark chocolate coming into play. Lots of nice, subtle dried fruit flavorings too. The most surprising thing about this brew is the coffee kick in the middle. It tastes almost like ground coffee beans. Not to say coffee is an overriding component, but there's definitely that distinctive touch of a cup of freshly ground joe. It's both unexpected and welcome. A subtle, but quite present smokey quality permeates all aspects of the taste. Very interesting. Little bit of a bittering finish from the hops, along with only a hint of alcohol. Mouthfeel is suitably full and slippery on the tongue. Leaves the palate with a bit of a tongue-smacking dryness. Booziness is an afterthought.

A well-crafted imperial stout from a relatively new and interesting brewery. For anyone wondering about the name of the brew, the story is detailed on their website and is actually kind of funny. Hope they continue to do good things and make good beer.

Serving type: on-tap

08-27-2011 02:44:13 | More by r0nyn

Mebuzzard

Colorado

3.63/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Armsby Abbey in Worcestor, Woostah...whatever. Under the sheriff's office. Nice touch

Black pour, or a very dark brown. Dense white head. Looks quite nice and thick.

chocolate, toffee, coffee and raisin aroma. Seems more dry than sweet just by smelling it. On to taste...

Dark chocolate, raisin, dark plum. The coffee is an afterthought, I think. Seems to mingle between sweet and dry. Some leather and herbal spice comes and goes. Hint of anise. It's good beer. I would like to know the story behind it and the name. Hmmm.

A bit boozy in the end. A good desert beer to cut through some sweet gooey-ness

Serving type: on-tap

08-19-2011 00:06:54 | More by Mebuzzard

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.08/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Tap at Armsby Abbey

Nice dark thick fluffy head of 1/2 finger over pitch black thick head.

Nose has lots of roasted malts, coffee, earthy charred malts, black patent malt , slight hint of dark chocolate, hints of earthy hops, light caramel and vanilla.

Taste brings more dark malts, earthy charred malts but not heavy, roasted malts with some coffee, light cocoa powder, hint of dark chocolate, light creamy malts maybe oats. Some light earthy hops in there as well with a decent bitterness also coming from the charred malts. Light wood flavors, and light warming booze. Finishes a bit drier but wasn't very sweet to start, mouth coating thick syrupy finish with more bitter earthy hops, bitter charred roasted malts, and bit of dark chocolate.

Mouth is heavier bodied but a bit thinner than I expected but pretty much what it should be at 8.6% imperial stout, decent carb, some warming booze that is balanced by the heaviness of the beer.

Overall good, nice roast and choc malts, big, a bit rich and creamy, nice bitterness, roasted malts, balances the booze well, and fairly drinkable for how big the beer is, despite a bit lighter on the body but expected for only being 8.6%. A great job for their first Imperial Stout.

Serving type: on-tap

08-11-2011 01:34:18 | More by jlindros