Storm King Stout - Victory Brewing Company

ThisWangsChung

Maryland

4.45/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a tulip glass.

A: Pours a textbook borderline pitch black color with vaguely visible carbonation trails. The head is a touch lighter than I like (then again, maybe I'm spoiled by Ten Fidy), as it's only a lighter shade of tan (three fingers high), but it's retention is almost frustrating. Nice lacing, too.

S: LOTS of chocolate and roast comprise the smell...but so do a LOT of piny hops, also. Schizophrenic, but in a good way.

T: The first sip surprises with its strong hop bitterness that's very piny in nature. At first, I wondered if I would even like it. But after a while, the hop profile only becomes a complementing note, allowing its RIS character to shine through, with lots of roasty bitterness, chocolate, coffee, saltiness, soy, wood, and a touch of dark fruit, with all of the flavors balancing themselves well. Unbelievable drinkability for a big stout, though it could seemingly pass for a black ale at times.

M: A little thin bodied for a RIS, and very drying, though it manages to avoid feeling like a porter, thanks to its high stickiness. High carbonation for the style, too. Aside from the bitterness, its hoppiness help imparts its drinkability factor.

O: On the very first sip, I wondered whether or not I would even like this. After that, though, I can see why this was so well hyped back in the day. This would have (somehow) been even better if A) my bottle was fresh, or B) my bottle had a year or so of age on it. Even with the hops in an uncomfortable 'gray' area (they're in the stage where they only provide a generic bitterness), I was very much impressed with this. Awesome stuff.

Serving type: bottle

04-08-2012 21:43:56 | More by ThisWangsChung

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