186. Great Divide Brewing Yeti Imperial Stout

Just looking at this beer you know it is a strong stout. Pours a magnificent black, thin coffee colored head with great lacing and thick as an imperial stout should be. Not a lot of aroma but some coffee and alcohol. This beer is a thick sipping beer and seems to be best slightly warm. Taste has tons of roasted malts, coffee and chocolate but is balanced by some citrus hops that linger in the aftertaste. If you open a bottle plan on enjoying it the entire night as it will take a while to get through the 22 oz bomber. 
Pros: Appearance, mouth feel

Cons: 

Alcohol Content: 9.5% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 75
Rating:  
Brewers Website: Great Divide

Brewers Description: is an onslaught of the senses. It starts with big, roasty malt flavor that gives way to rich caramel and toffee notes. YETI gets its bold hop character from an enormous quantity of American hops. It weighs in at a hefty 75 IBUs.  9.5% ABV

175. Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout

This beer has been hanging out in my fridge since Thanksgiving which is hard to believe as I have reviewed 75 beers since then. Decided it was time to open this one for dessert. The beer pours a great black color with thick tan head that leaves great lacing on the glass, just what a stout should look and act like. Aroma is of chocolate, toffee and dark fruit. Taste is chocolate roasted malts to start followed up by some coffee and licorice with just a hint of a hop finish. Not nearly as sweet as I had expected from a chocolate stout and does not have the strong alcohol taste that you often get from a 10% ABV beer. Serve this beer at a slightly warmer temp; 45-50 degrees and you will enjoy it. 
Pros: Color, not too sweet

Cons: 

Alcohol Content: 10.0% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): ??
Rating: 

Brewers Website: Brooklyn Brewery

Brewers Description: Available from October through March. This is the famous Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, our award-winning rendition of the Imperial Stout style, once made exclusively for Catherine the Great. We use three mashes to brew each batch of this beer, achieving a luscious deep dark chocolate flavor through a blend of specially roasted malts. We brew it every year for the winter season. It is delicious when newly bottled, but also ages beautifully for years. 

54. Samuel Adams Imperial Stout

Took me 53 reviews to get to my first stout and now 2 in a row. This Imperial Stout from Sam Adams is entirely different from the Shipyard reviewed in #53. Pours to the same almost black color, nice thick head that thins quickly but remains to leave a nice lace on the glass as you drink. Taste is a slightly burnt chocolaty flavor which is better than the coffee flavor of the Shipyard Blue Fin. I cannot figure out what the aroma is but it is not terribly appealing. Sam Adams site says this would go well with Oysters or dessert, I don't eat oysters so had to try it after dinner as a dessert and it worked well. High alcohol content and thickness make this a sipping beer. If you like stouts give this one a try. 

Pros: Color, Alcohol content

Cons: Aroma (strange smell)

Alcohol Content: 9.2% ABV
Calories: 308
IBU (Bitterness): 42
Rating: 
Brewers Website: Samuel Adams
Brewers Description: A massive beer once brewed for royalty.
Samuel Adams® Imperial Stout is our take on the traditional Russian imperial stouts from the 18th century.  While this style originated in England, American craft brewers have embraced the style and taken it to whole new level of flavor and complexity.  We think we raised the bar again.  Samuel Adams Imperial Stout is a massive beer filled with big, dark flavors.  It has been a brewery favorite in recent years and we are excited to share this intense brew with you.Samuel Adams Imperial Stout is our take on the traditional Russian imperial stouts from the 18th century.  English brewers supplied these stouts for the Russian imperial court of Catherine the Great, who had taken a great liking to the beer.  In order for the beer to survive the long trip to St. Petersburg, the flavor and alcohol were amped up to preserve the beer.

The first thing you notice about this beer is its color.  It is black as night and almost completely opaque.  Next is the cappuccino colored head and the aroma filled with notes of coffee, smoky chocolate, and licorice.

Samuel Adams Imperial Stout was brewed with seven different varieties of malted barley, each delivering its own unique flavor for the beer.  But this beer is not a “malt bomb”.  It is balanced by 50 BUs of East Kent Goldings hops that have a clean earthy aroma and pleasant bitterness. This is a colossal beer that should be savored and enjoyed