Old Heathen Imperial Stout - Weyerbacher Brewing Co.

mttaylor1066

Connecticut

3.63/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Not among the top Imperial Stouts I have tasted. Strange that the Bros. liked it so much.

Appearance -- If you've ever drained overly used oil from the VW Kharmann Ghia you owned in college, you know what this beer looks like. (Not UN-appealing, though.) Thin, tan, persistent head.

Smell - Boozy, light fruit. You get the sweetness even before the liquid hits your palate. You know there are hops, somewhere.

Taste -- Sweet, boozy with a bitter chocolate backbone. Not bad, but lacks a contrast and body that would make this a better stout. I'm not advocating adding soured beer to the wort like Guinness does, but something is missing here.

Mouthfeel -- Bright effervescence with a lingering chocolate coating on the tongue. Hey, this isn't a session beer, take your time!

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2012 21:03:54 | More by mttaylor1066

KTCamm

New Jersey

4.23/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a pint glass.

Pours jet black. Rim of brown foam. Foam clears off the top. Rich roasted smell. Some dark chocolate too. Creamy roasted taste. Loads of coffee taste. Milky smooth. Very tasty. Light bitter finish.

Quite good, and then some.

Serving type: bottle

06-21-2012 23:19:56 | More by KTCamm

sjverla

Massachusetts

4.1/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Nose: Nice and estery - banana is oddly prominent but very complimentary to the chocolate and bready aromas. A hint of alcohol cuts through the dessert.

Appearance: Light barely peeks through the top of this inky-black beer. No head but a ring of caramel bubbles.

Taste: Milk chocolate with some dry cocoa bitterness in the finish. The flavor doesn't do too much else, but the flavor is good and strong and the feel is smooth and velvety.

Overall: Not the most complex Imperial Stout, but seriously satisfying.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2012 01:00:57 | More by sjverla

mocktm

Virginia

3.83/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Huge thanks to Mark (zipper8650) for the bottle; hell of a generous BA.

Into a pint, this is pretty dark and ominous off the pour. Khaki colored head which is quite faint in appearance.

Smells damn awesome: molasses, brown sugar and burnt chocolate, with a huge scent of plum like dark fruit.

Dark chocolate all the way up front with a accompanying tang presence through out. Hops are present but not biting. Alcohol at 8% is completely masked and not intrusive. Nicely balanced and damn tasty.

A tad bit light for the style as far as body is concerned. No complaints here, other than that.

Nice RIS for the price point. Love the fact that it comes in sixers, making it easy to cellar. Will have again, Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2012 23:18:38 | More by mocktm

Jake351

Massachusetts

4.83/5  rDev +22.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Poured out to a black wall with reddish-brown tint. No light coming throught this one.

S: Burnt fruit, chocolate, and dark coffee.

T: Roasted malty goodness, with a coffee bite, and a slight chocolate aftertaste, pleasantly and briefly sweet. Some caramel notes evolve as it warms up with later sips. Nice!

M: Medium-full bodied, full without being cloying.

O: Overall a strong product, and great value for price. Can't wait to see what age would do to the characters in this one. Very good representative of its class.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2012 22:31:18 | More by Jake351

flagmantho

Washington

3.85/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from 12oz bottle into a tulip.

Appearance: entirely black with a one-finger cap of frothy dark tan foam. Nice.

Smell: light aroma of dark fruits and a hint of chocolate. Quite good, but very light in intensity.

Taste: rich, dark fruits along with a good component of roasty malts. Quite like a rich Baltic porter. Bitterness is low. Overall, I rather like the flavor, though it is a tad unorthodox for the style.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a fizzy effervescence and a light creaminess. This beer has less body than I usually expect from the style, but it is not bad.

Overall: I find myself rather liking this beer, though it is a bit off-point for style. I would really enjoy a touch more body, though.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2012 17:49:12 | More by flagmantho

CaptDavyJones

New York

3.98/5  rDev +1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured pitch black from a 12 oz bottle, with ABV and date of bottling marked clearly on the bottle.
One finger dark mocha colored head that dissipated fairly quickly.
Aroma is all chocolate and heavy roasted malts. Not too overwhelming, but definitely an inviting aroma.
Taste is similar to the aroma, lots and lots of malt flavor. Sweet upfront giving way to a nice roasted, smoky finish.
Easy to drink and very flavorful. The only issue I had was the mouthfeel. It is bordering on a medium-bodied stout, some more richness would make this really, really good.
The alcohol is also well-masked making it easy to drink.
Overall, this is a good RIS and is definitely worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2012 04:39:35 | More by CaptDavyJones

Hex92

Virginia

4.4/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Mmmm good. Very good RIS. Perfect malt. Not over done with the roasting of the malts. Nice sweet taste. Coffee flavor with the sweet malt.
Great mouth feel. Just the right mouth feel. Good carbonation and not too sticky sweet.
What else to say. Its a great beer and I definitely will pick this up again if I see it.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2012 02:40:27 | More by Hex92

garuda

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A - Imperial Stout-like. Head has little retention and spotty lacing.

S/T/M - A little on the sweet side for the style. Rich, full mouthfeel, that doesn't really finish dry enough, leaving a bit of excess sweetness coating the mouth. Roast, licorice, chocolate, dark fruit flavors have a nice complexity and work very well.

O - A touch of hops and a little bit more of dry finish would knock this out of the park. Still, a very solid year round offering.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2012 01:33:55 | More by garuda

BEERMILER12

Maine

3.93/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottled 030112
Best By 110112

A: Pours a near pitch black with 1/2 an inch of brown head that quickly fizzles to nothing

S: Roasted malts, chocolate, and some coffee. Not much else

T: Follows the nose, dominated by roasted malts and coffee grinds, along with a hint of dark chocolate. Some light hop bitterness rounds out the finish

M: Medium-full bodied with light-moderate carbonation

O: Seems like this is more on the American imperial stout side than the RIS side, but that could just be me. As it warms, the RIS side come out more, though. Solid year-round beer, obviously would be better in the later fall and winter months. Worth a buy

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2012 23:49:41 | More by BEERMILER12

JDizzle

Indiana

3.28/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle bought at Jungle Jims in Cincinnati, OH.

Pours pretty dark brown with a small brown head with tight bubbles. It looks OK.

Smells of roasted malts, chocolate, metalic, and a dark fruity whiff to round it off.

Taste is not what I hoped for a RIS. It's not complex at all with a little chocolate, malt, and a bit of coffee.

Really thin! Too thin, but mouthfell is smooth with the right amount of carbs.

Overall, not great, or even good. I will not seek this one out again.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2012 23:12:20 | More by JDizzle

DaveBlack

Virginia

4.48/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Black as midnight, only a 1/2 finger of brown head on the top, it has a moderate retention time and leaves some slight lacing.

S: Toasted malts, chocolate. Also a sweet, dark fruit smell that reminds me of a Belgian quad. Really deep and rich.

T: Dark roasted coffee, chocolate malts, and sweet chocolate as well. there is a slight malt bitterness to it, but also a nice sweetness. The dark fruits come through in the favor as well. the end is toasty malts and slightly bitter.

M: Heavy body, nice and thick with a low amount of carbonation. a thick beer, and slightly creamy.

O: Another delicious offering from Weyerbacher. This beer is complex, well balanced, and delicious.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2012 22:22:10 | More by DaveBlack

jmarklan

Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a complete ebony that lets no light through. Great look. Head doesn't last very long.

S: Chocolate ice cream, dark fruits, a bit boozy. Slight bourbon as well.

T: Nice balance between the dark malts and the fruit (plum, slight cherry). The alcohol blends in well, a bit peppery and warming, not overpowering. All the flavors blend together nicely in the finish with a mocha taste taking center stage.

M: Medium body, very smooth and drinkable despite the high abv, but it feels a bit watery towards the end.

Overall: I don't know exactly how this compares to other RISs since i'm not too familiar with the style, but this is a fine stout nonetheless.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2012 03:11:25 | More by jmarklan

jdense

Oregon

3.98/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. bottle from Chevy Chase Wine and Liquor, Washington, DC, poured into Barley Brown's pint glass, 4.12.12.

Not much head, about a quarter finger, quick dissipation resulted in thin broken layer on top of dark brown opaque body with some faint red highlights. Big chocolate presence up front, dark with some cocoa nibs, fruit nose, citrus, no noticeable coffee aromas. Chocolate dominates the malt forward taste, some toffee, a bit of coffee and citrus hops for balance but fairly malt forward. Mouthfeel is creamy, a bit on the full side of medium, good effervescence, a bit sticky. A bit more malt depth than Old Rasputin, IMHO, other than the appearance re lack of head pretty tasty stuff.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2012 02:01:03 | More by jdense

chinchill

South Carolina

4.23/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

undated 12 oz bottle served in a snifter.

Pours a very dark and reddish mahogany with a creamy tan hea. The head has excellent retention and thoroughly coats the glass when tipped. 4.7

A robust stout with a solid dark malt base. Hints of coffee and plums and cherries in the surprisingly fruity aroma. Light spicy hops come out more in the taste; one reason the flavor is less fruity than the aroma. Excellent level of mild bitterness, which lingers a good while in the dark malt aftertaste. Other than a hint sherry in the taste and, more so, the aroma, the 8% alcohol is well hidden.

M: is remarkably smooth and creamy. Not sure I've had had a beer more creamy other than nitros. Full bodied. Slightly dry finish.

O: Excellent RIS. Richly flavored and very well balanced. No burnt notes and just a hint of smoke despite the ample, dark roasted malts.

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2012 00:17:15 | More by chinchill

BB1313

Ohio

3.08/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12oz bottle poured into a snifter. Pours black, barely any light getting though at all. Tan foamy head which fades pretty quickly, nice retention and decent lacing. Nice aromas, but they're pretty faint. I'm picking up a decent amount of roasted chocolate and a touch of smoke. Lots of malts with a decent breadiness. The flavors are fine, but like the aromas, the somewhat fall flat. Once again, nothing offensive, just typical. More chocolate, lots of malt. I'm also tasting some anise and a touch of expresso. I just wish everything was more pronounced. Mouthfeel is pretty nice. It's on the heavier side of medium-bodied. There's a nice creaminess to it, but the carbonation is there. Alcohol goes unnoticed.

This imperial stout is fine, but I just wish it was bolder and more pronounced. It just isn't too memorable.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2012 00:40:21 | More by BB1313

CrazyDavros

Australia

3.9/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours black as the night with a small, fading head.
Nose shows roasted malt, oats, soft coffee, earthy chocolate, vanilla and faint liquorice.
Similar flavours; roasted malt, oats, soft coffee. The roasted malt is not too harsh or intense. Quite drinkable really.
Carbonation could be a bit higher.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2012 08:23:39 | More by CrazyDavros

MatthewWilde

Massachusetts

3.55/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Sample: 1 bottle 2012

A: Almost black, very deep reddish brown, mild internal carbonation, medium brown small head which evolves into decent lacing

S: Strong notes of espresso, mesquite, hints of cocoa, even elements of bbq, definitely some alcohol present as well

T: Bold coffee flavors, quite sweet, hickory, pepper and other spice nuances, mild alcohol to finish

M: Quite smooth for such a heavy brew, moderate abv, but not too noticeable, light aftertaste, but not overpowering

O: Not my favorite imperial stout, but a nice sweet and bitter brew, almost meat-like

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2012 04:01:10 | More by MatthewWilde

muletrane

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottled 1/24/12

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a CBS snifter.

A: Pours a jet black colour with no light shining through. One finger of creamy tan head. Dissapates quickly with very little lace.

S: I'm getting alot of dark fruits and chocolate with a faint coffee roastiness.

T: Starts with a sweet chocolate flavor then the coffee bitterness comes through. The finish is slightly sweet with some lingering bitterness.

M: Moderate body and carbonation. Slightly thin and fizzy for the style but still a good mouthfeel all around. Very easy to drink for an imperial stout.

Overall this a pretty nice example of the style. Weyerbacher did a nice job of making a well balanced easy to drink imperial stout.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2012 14:12:55 | More by muletrane

chanokokoro

Illinois

4.03/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to bryanole27 for this brew

12 oz. bottle poured into a snifter

A: Used motor oil with a beige one finger head that quickly disipates.

S: Aroma of roasted grain, raisins, a bit of plum, and understated espresso notes

T: Roasted sweet malts up front with dark fruit accents, sherry and chocolate also come through, espresso also makes a bit of an appearance. Just a bit of bitterness, slightly dry finish.

M: Carbonation is very evident, extremely smooth medium to full body.

O: A really solid RIS. This beer was a joy to drink and savor. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2012 06:37:45 | More by chanokokoro

jtierney89

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The only Weyerbacher year round brew I've yet to try and I'm excited for it. This'll make or break whether I bring it into the store after this summer has passed.

Pours a deep deep (almost black) yet clear auburn color with a light brown head with good retention. Nose is more subtle then expected on this one. Can make out faint coffee covered espresso beans.

Big long finish on this beer is the first thing i noticed. Big roasted malt flavor followed by black bitter coffee. Not overly bitter but delicately balanced. Lighter in body then expected as well but still rather chewy. Big roasted coffee and chocolate flavors linger in the mouth battling eachother for dominance creating amazing balance. A ubstle and complex brew. Not the best but certainly pretty good and definitely deserving of being ranked up there for its availability and price point.

Subtle notes of dark fruits are present along with other flavors that would take hours to pin point. An overall great beer though. Looking forward to trying heresy now seeing as this is the base.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2012 03:59:45 | More by jtierney89

jtmartino

California

4.2/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into my Bruery snifter. Bottle was cellared for 6 months after purchase.

Pours a rich dark brown with 2.5 fingers of wheat-toast colored head. Smell is really nice - rich, thick, sweet caramel and a light acrid carmelized sugar smell. This is a delicious smelling beer.

Taste is quite different than the smell. Smooth, creamy, and sweet malt up front with a surprise of underlying tartness from the roasted malt and hops. Leaves a dry bitterness in the mouth. Some tart fruit flavors on the finish.

Mouthfeel is good for the style. Medium body, with a dry mouth-puckering finish.

This is a great imperial stout. While the flavor doesn't match the mesmerizing smell, it's still refreshing and drinkable given the ABV.

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2012 07:04:18 | More by jtmartino

ADZA

Australia

3.35/5  rDev -15%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Love the label and the fact this is readily available to my state and pours a black as night hue which leaves a fast vanishing one finger head and little lacing,the smell is dark malts,milky coffee,sweet alcohol and hops pretty average actually,the mouthfeel is only light-medium bodied and too light for my RIS's and has tastes of chocolate malts,milky coffee,dark fruits and finished with a pine hop bitterness but overall its only above average and i hate to say it but i was expecting way more and can think of way more better RIS's and wouldnt buy this again but would drink if offered cheers.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 13:21:51 | More by ADZA

Zachtheporter

Wisconsin

3.8/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a pint glass.

A- Pours a deep dark black with a brownish tint when pouted. The head is a dark tan and very bubbly. It dissipates quickly before forming a thin lacing upon the top of the glass.

S- Smells very strongly of burnt malts. notes of chocolate, caramel peanuts, oak, and earthy grass.

T- Tastes very strongly of burnt malts. Somewhat sweet taste of milk/lactose sugar. slight woody notes. chocolaty and smokey.

M- A very heavy beer. Lightly carbonated. Clean feeling.

O- A very solid Russian Imperial Stout. somewhat low in ABV for the style IMO but very tasty. Definitely worth the buy.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2012 08:06:30 | More by Zachtheporter

Blueribbon666

Ohio

4.48/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Review from notes. Pours pitch black into dimpled mug with a brown lacy head of about a quarter inch. Smells of malt and a smokey peat. Taste/mouthfeel; good rich flavor right up front, nice blend of malt and the aforementioned smokiness. Good amount of carbonation to keep it lively and not slick, the abv was barely noticeable. Overall a very good imp stout and another solid one from Weyerbacher.

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2012 12:46:32 | More by Blueribbon666