Chocolate Russian Imperial Stout '13 - Widmer Brothers Brewing Company

metter98

New York

3.76/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A: The beer is jet black in color. It poured with a quarter finger high tan head that died down, leaving wispy lacing on the surface and a collar around the edge of the glass.
S: Light to moderate aromas of sweet malts are present in the nose along with notes of licorice and hints of roasted malts.
T: The taste is similar to the smell, although it also has favors of roasted malts. A light amount of bitterness is present. The chocolate flavors become stronger as the beers warm up.
M: It feels full-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer doesn't taste as roasty compared to other Russian Imperal Stouts and doesn't deliver as much chocolate flavors as I would have expected.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 04:01:36 | More by metter98

dtivp

West Virginia

3.73/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pours a deep dark brown with two fingers of a foamy dark tan head with good retention that fades into a thick cap with heavy lacing.

Aroma of dark chocolate, roasted malt and hints of alcohol.

Taste was roasty with dark roasted malt, bitter chocolate with a slight hint of sweet cocoa or milk chocolate and a slight dry bitter ending with a little alcohol warmth.

Mouth Feel is medium leaning full body with light carbonation, smooth with a slight bitterness and a nice alcohol glow at the end.

Overall a very nice Russian Imp Stout, I'm not a big chocolate beer lover, however, I enjoyed this one and would buy again.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2013 00:50:11 | More by dtivp

richj1970

Alabama

4.13/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from 22 oz bomber into snifter glass.

A: Pitch black with nice 3 finger brown head. Some minimal lacing but nothing to speak of. The wax seal makes for attractive packaging but made the bottle a pain to open.

S: Roasted malts with coffee notes, chocolates, maybe a bit of licorice.

T: Bitter chocolates are up front especially as it warmed up. Nice coffee and roasts flavors coming through. A slight hint of some fruity flavors underneath, maybe cherry.

M: Nice medium body with average carbonation. Not too thick, but coats tongue well.

O: Good chocolate stout. Very enjoyable to drink. I prefer the Yeti chocolates just a bit to this one, but a solid choice still.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2013 23:05:19 | More by richj1970

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Appearance. Pours a deep dark brown, pretty close to black with a shim of tan head that doesn't last long.

Smell. Sweet dark chocolate, dark malts and molasses with a bit of licorice and smoke.

Taste. Bitter dark chocolate with high cocoa content (in a good way), a bit of dark malt and dark fruits, and some grain alcohol.

Mouthfeel. Medium-full body with medium-low carbonation with some soothing warmth.

Overall. A decent chocolate stout that's heavy on the cocoa. I liked it.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 17:48:18 | More by Rutager

Maltmaiden

Alabama

3.54/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: well it looks like a stout. a dark brown one.

S: Lots of milk chocolate. fig. alcohol. vanilla.

T: Bitter chocolate. Very roasted/burnt malt. alcohol is definitely there. some citrussy hops.

M: Medium. Moderately dry with a long finish.

O: Not bad flavors but the alcohol kinda killed the moment by being do overpowering. Probably won't drink another this year...maybe I'll age one to mellow it out a little...

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2013 04:18:14 | More by Maltmaiden

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Black color. Frothy and fluffy in the head department. Looks nice.

Roasty nose with bitter chocolate and charred grain; combatted by noticeable hop bitterness. Creamy notes also evident.

Sweet maltiness and dark chocolate with secondary notes of black coffee and licorice. Some char. Some toffee sweetness.

A little prickly with back-of-the-throat booze. Body feels okay. On the full side. Carbonation is soft.

Decent Chocolate RIS. Would buy again.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2013 01:14:00 | More by thecheapies

tdm168

North Carolina

4.38/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A - pitch black with a thick, dark brown head

S - cocoa, bittersweet chocolate, coffee

T - huge, chocolate notes, big coffee presence, roasted malts, some alcohol, mildly bitter finish

M - full bodied, smooth, well carbonated

This was a really nice offering. The chocolate was absolutely impressive. The balance was also impeccable. The coffee added a nice bitter balance to the sweet coffee. Overall, this is one of the best beers I've had from Widmer. This is definitely a beer I will have again.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2013 01:47:39 | More by tdm168

SawDog505

New Hampshire

4.21/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured into a Lost Abbey glass, bottled on 12/13/12. Pours a slick black with a 3 inch light brown head, that leaves lace all over the sides of the glass. Smell is very large dark chocolate, coffee, some roasted malt, and toffee. Taste is similar, rich chocolate dances on the palate to start and gives way to some roasted coffee and carmel. Body is medium, plenty of life, a little dry, and very drinkable. This is very nice, maybe a little more expensive than some equal or More quality beer, but tasty for sure.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2013 01:22:10 | More by SawDog505

PorterLambic

Florida

4.18/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Arrives a deep, dark, nearly black liquid with a creamy, dark tan head. Retention is quite good and settles to a big island. Glass is just covered in a sheet of lace.
Smell is odd. The first and strongest note is cider. Not certain if this is just from an incompletely cleared line or intentional. Once past that, faint malt and cocoa are all I found.
Taste is rich with toasted malt, dark chocolate, some toffee and a whiff of rum and dark fruit in the post swallow/aftertaste moment.
Full bodied with just a minimum of carbonation. Rich, supremely smooth, almost like drinking velvet. Some coating of the tongue and palate. Extremely good once past the nose.

Serving type: on-tap

01-31-2013 23:12:07 | More by PorterLambic

JohnGalt1

Idaho

3.46/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Picked up tonight at the COOP for $11ish... Poured into my slim tulip.. 1 finger of brownish head sticks around for a while and leaves decent lacing for the entire glass.. the brew is pretty much black but a tiny bit of light shows deep ruby in the stem end of my glass.

Nose is more oriented toward chocolate and cocoa than RIS aromas... cocoa nibs and some slight dark fruits are the highlights.. Unfortunately there is a bit of pronounced EtOH with warmth..

Flavor shows cocoa and light roast that is brought up front by a light sorta creamy sweetness... a bit of char and hints of smoke in the finish remind me that this is a bigger stout... some dark fruit notes show as the temp rises..

Body is a solid medium with a light carbonation... sorta silky..

Decent beer... not great... could use more traditional stout flavors (albeit light) to help make this brew standout a bit more.

3.75/3.25/3.5/3.5/3.5

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 06:34:17 | More by JohnGalt1

Gregfalone

California

3.51/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bomber, bottled 12/13/12

Appearance is appealing, dark brown, damn near black. A very high pour into my newcastle nucleation glass yields about two inches of dense, tight light tan head, which dissipated to a thin layer after about 10 minutes. Nice lacing

Smells of chocolate, hops, and alcohol.

Tastes strongly of dark heavy chocolate up front, followed with a bitter hops taste, and a warm, but boozy taste. The flavors aren't bad, but the don't blend smoothly enough for my taste. The potential is there, and I think this beer might benefit from a year or two in the cellar. Maybe ill update this next year.

Mouthfeel is a little thin, and slightly over carbonated for my liking. Not unpleasant, but not great.

Overall, I think there is potential here, and I'm going to get a couple more bottles to drink in a year, and later.
Unfortunately that is not what I am rating, and I have to say that fresh, this beer is a little dissapointing for the price. A good beer, but I definately feel like I overspent

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2013 07:47:47 | More by Gregfalone

Zorro

California

3.5/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Ale brewed with chocolate nibs.

Pours thick with the color of used motor oil. Light proof beer with a tall brown colored head.

Smell of chocolate and toasted grain with a little smoke and a charred grain aroma. Mildly sweet with some caramel in the scent and a little coffee. OK but it could be more aromatic.

Starts out sweet with a bittersweet flavor overall, chocolate is the after taste. Slight bit of smoke in the flavor the malt is about perfect to balance out the patent malt. Good chocolate and it is just slightly bitter. More of a 3.75 in the flavor area.

Mouthfeel is thick.

Tasty beer but not really outstanding. Similar to North Coast Old Rasputin.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 01:22:15 | More by Zorro