Terrapin Big Daddy Vlady's Russian Imperial Stout - Terrapin Beer Company

colts9016

Idaho

3.65/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Another Bottle from my cellar, I am excited to try this beer, despite some of the pitiful reviews. Poured into a nonic at 55 degrees.

Appearance: A three finger foamy bubbly head that has good retention. The head is a medium brown color and left some lacing on the glass. The color of the beer dark brown, like burnt motor oil. The clarity of the beer is opaque.

Nose: A deep rich roasted malt with burnt, espresso, chocolate, toasted, and biscuit notes. Other aromas alcohol, fruity esters, dark cherries, raisins, toffee, and caramel.

Taste: A rich roasted malt flavor with burnt espresso, dark chocolate, toasted ad biscuit tones. Other flavor is alcohol, fruity esters, toffee, caramel, cherries, and hops( wood, grapefruit,and floral).

Mouth feel of the beer is coating, warm, astringent, and carbonated.

Overall: The body of the beer is medium full and the finish is lasting. This is a decent RIS, but the overall complexity and uniformity is a jumbled. I was hoping for a more balanced and smooth beer. It is a good beer with a lot of potential.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2012 00:29:49 | More by colts9016

bamadog

Kentucky

3.94/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

PIcked this one up a couple of years ago and read that it was a pretty hop-forward stout so I let it sit for a while to hopefully let them mellow out and allow the malts to come to the front. Review is from notes taken on 5/17/2013 and poured from the bottle to a snifter.

Appearance: Pour looks about like it should, but I was hoping for a slightly thicker looking body. Starts with a one finger deep, nice, rich and dark brown head that looks creamy. Head has decent retention, which leads me to believe that the hop resins are still lingering quite a bit, and the head eventually dwindles down to a complete, but uneven skim. Body is, of course, opaque and shows signs of moderately strong carbonation in tiny streams creeping up along the sides of the glass.

Smell: Hmmm... definitely still quite a bit of earthy and bitter hops, first thing I notice, but that's perhaps because I'm looking for them. Bit of a metallic and dirt-like twinge to it, but not awful or anything like that. Definite bitter roastiness and some bittersweet chocolate as well. Decent, but I really like some rich, big and roasty malts up front with more of a sweeter edge in the nose as opposed to the hops.

Taste: Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky. While there are definitely some hops right up front (still), there is more a balance than I thought there would be with what I like in a big stout -- the bitter roastiness belies it all and hangs out underneath the hops, but there is a really nice, chocolate covered cherry and vanilla aspect in there, and a nice blast of alcohol which is entirely masked in the nose and makes a loud and proud appearance on the back of the tongue. I was a little disappointed with the nose, but the mouth is definitely making up for some lost ground.

Mouthfeel: A little thin, but not like it's watery or anything. A nice, fairly sticky coating is left on the palate and slight grittiness on the teeth. Warm booziness left lingering on the breath and it keeps the belly warm as well.

Overall: Not mindblowing or anything, but definitely solid. Probably not worth any extra amount of cash but I like Terrapin and I'm glad they didn't disappoint.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 01:46:42 | More by bamadog

Kelp

New Hampshire

4/5  rDev +8.7%

05-09-2013 05:36:32 | More by Kelp

t0rin0

California

3/5  rDev -18.5%

02-27-2013 12:56:55 | More by t0rin0

calcnerd

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +8.7%

02-04-2013 03:08:51 | More by calcnerd

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

4.29/5  rDev +16.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

22 oz bottle poured into a snifter.
10.25% ABV,

Thanks to Chaney for this want!

A - Inky black in color, this dark stout pours with a fleeting tan head that leaves random groupings of bubbles on the surface and dots of lace on the snifter.

S - Cold like the air of mother Russia, this Russian imperial stout screams dark chocolate, feet away from the pour. Mocha, dry cocoa, and black coffee add a bit of harshness to the smooth chocolatey nose. Notes of smoke waft out from behind the mild alcohol which increases with a vigorous swirl.

T - Heavy chocolate roast really drops the hammer with a powerful blow of dark chocolate bar dusted with hot chocolate mix and dirty cocoa. Aggressive and rich, cold French-pressed coffee and alcohol-soaked raisin come in to play as it warms.

M - Big Daddy Vlady's Russian Imperial Stout has a smooth, rich entry that becomes more balanced with grittiness and a dry, bitter roasted malt finish. This full-bodied beer is warming with a touch of alcohol on the finish that is suitable for sustaining a Siberian native.

O - Terrapin nails the style with brutal finesse as this beer captures layers of dark malt complexity while including heavy roast for a smooth-yet-gritty finish that balances almost flawlessly. I'm not sure of the age on it, but it's damn fine right now.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 19:17:59 | More by BeerFMAndy

gratefulbeerhead

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev +15.5%

01-21-2013 00:58:44 | More by gratefulbeerhead

coreyfmcdonald

Georgia

3.25/5  rDev -11.7%

01-08-2013 03:07:21 | More by coreyfmcdonald

sendbeer

Georgia

3.5/5  rDev -4.9%

12-23-2012 05:21:39 | More by sendbeer

larryi86

Delaware

4/5  rDev +8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle poured into a snifter
Got this over a year and a half ago during a trade, forgot who sent this to me, so thank to who sent it!

A- Black with a small half finger mocha head.

S- Chocolate, touch of coffee, some dark fruits, caramel, toffee.

T- Very close to the smell, chocolate, caramel, toffee, touch of dark fruits, espresso in the finish.

M- Medium to fully body, smooth, creamy.

O- A tasty stout, I am not sure how this tasted fresh but I think that it is still drinking well.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2012 02:13:17 | More by larryi86

csustar001

Ohio

5/5  rDev +35.9%

11-05-2012 10:31:30 | More by csustar001

ncaudle

Virginia

3.5/5  rDev -4.9%

10-17-2012 18:34:53 | More by ncaudle

bigfnjoe

Pennsylvania

2.73/5  rDev -25.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass

A- pours black with a one finger brown head that fades pretty quickly. Standard, with a lacking head. Disappointing

S- chocolate, and a ton of booze. Lots of dark fruits. Licorice. Pretty much all the things I don't like in an imperial stout

T- extremely bitter chocolate. Slight roast. Alcohol burns at the end. Ugh

M- paper thin body. No bueno

O- not a fan of this at all. I aged this for maybe a year, and it's still dripping with booziness. The body destroys a lot of the "mystique" for me as well, as there is absolutely no thickness to this whatsoever. Stick with Wake & Bake and MooHoo, stay far away from this

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 01:00:01 | More by bigfnjoe

BennyL1

Massachusetts

3.53/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served in a globe glass. Doing a little cellar cleaning - this one looks good!

Big Daddy Vlady's pours a dark-as-night jet black color with a slim mocha colored head that doesn't stick around for very long. Solid looking RIS.

Lots of roasted malt upfront as one would expect. Hints of dark chocolate and coffee. Dark fruits like raisins as well. Nothing overly dominating, decent aromas.

Tastes of bakers chocolate and burnt espresso up front. Plenty of roasted malt at the back end with no real bitterness. What you would expect from the style but nothing that sets it apart from other options. Body is full with carbonation on the lower end. Some definite alcohol warmth at the end.

Overall a good RIS. There are better options out there, but not a bad brew to try out.

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2012 01:31:33 | More by BennyL1

BrkfstOfChmpns

Georgia

4.25/5  rDev +15.5%

09-11-2012 22:06:39 | More by BrkfstOfChmpns

ADTaber

South Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +1.9%

09-08-2012 23:01:12 | More by ADTaber

Darkmagus82

Montana

4.23/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served on tap in a pint glass

Appearance – Served a thick black brew with a two finger tan head. The head faded over about a 1 minutes time to give a nice level of lacing.

Smell – The nose was heavy of coffee and roasted notes. With this was a good strong chocolate and sweet molasses and vanilla smell. Quite nice.

Taste – The taste begins with sweet molasses, roasted malt, and chocolate notes. As it advances more the sweetness shifts more towards a vanilla flavored sweetness. Toward the middle the level of sweetness fades slightly as well and notes of some coffee and espresso meeting the tongue. The chocolate and roasted flavors then intensify at the very end and mix with a not overpowering alcohol flavor to level a nice pleasant flavor on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – A nice thick and turbid body with a lower level of carbonation. Great for the style of brew as all the roasty and boozy flavors can really soak into the tongue.

Overall – One tasty, thick, and warming brew with great flavors. Go for it if you have a chance.

Serving type: on-tap

08-23-2012 00:54:15 | More by Darkmagus82

Keith_R

Georgia

4.25/5  rDev +15.5%

08-14-2012 21:47:45 | More by Keith_R

Crimsontider22

Alabama

4/5  rDev +8.7%

08-10-2012 03:47:18 | More by Crimsontider22

GOMECK

Georgia

2.75/5  rDev -25.3%

08-09-2012 16:33:05 | More by GOMECK

barleywinefiend

Washington

3.03/5  rDev -17.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Poured thick black with a moderate cap of brown bubbles followed by light lacing

S: Big roastiness here with coffee, bakers powder cocoa and perhaps some dark fruits and black liquorice

T: Starts off as blended milk chocolate and cheap bakers cocoa powder with a pungent booze sting. There is a moderate amount of coffee and roasted malt to keep it interesting, a light hint of black liquorice on the end

M: Medium to big bodied, perhaps a tad overly carbonated, bitter chocolate, roasted malts persist

O: No major complaints but not one I would go for again

Serving type: bottle

08-06-2012 19:33:25 | More by barleywinefiend

AwYeh

California

2.88/5  rDev -21.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

22 oz bottle poured into pint glass

A: Pours a dark brown, almost black color, with a small dark brown head.

S: Alcohol shows up here in strength, along with chocolate, coffee, and tons of roasted malts.

T: Alcohol and chocolate really dominate the flavor. Even coffee and the roasted malts are pushed aside a bit. It's tasty, but the alcohol is slightly offputting and there isn't much to reward successive tastes.

M: Thick-bodied and almost flat. Alcohol burn is considerable.

O: Fairly tasty chocolate flavors despite its lack of balance. While this beer doesn't pull it all together, I'm alright with having tried it (especially since the bottle was split three ways).

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2012 19:08:23 | More by AwYeh

3Hops

Minnesota

4/5  rDev +8.7%

08-02-2012 20:21:03 | More by 3Hops

pixieskid

France

3.5/5  rDev -4.9%

07-28-2012 16:28:26 | More by pixieskid

DrunkinYogi

Connecticut

3.75/5  rDev +1.9%

07-23-2012 00:53:31 | More by DrunkinYogi