Lagunitas Imperial Stout

Lagunitas Brewing Imperial Stout. 9.9% abv. 72 IBU. Black color. Two+ fingers of dense beige head. Superb retention and outstanding lace. Nose of dark malt, dark chocolate, distant herbal hops. Front taste of roasted malt, black coffee, dark fruit, raisins. Aftertaste of bittersweet chocolate, sweet roasted malt. Full body. Mouthfeel is thick, rich, sticky, herbal on the back.

This is an outstanding beer, filled with rich, roasty flavors and a background hop bitter bite. Highly recommended.

From the brewery:

"Made with Highly roasted malted barley, and plenty of it, to give the beer an uncommon richness and smoky, roasty depth. Just the way the 18th century Russian royalty liked it…. Having downed his fourth Imperial Stout of the day, the wild eyed charlatan from Voldvostogniaky belched and hollered for the Czarina to enter his chamber and bend herself to his will. The economy was a wreck and revolt was just around the corner. Nicky the Czar dude was off playing soldier like any pale nobleman with a hemorrhagic skin condition would. Such were the final days of the old empire. Reactionary, decadent, sputnik, stroganoff, weird, and drunk. But even as the proletariat countryside labored under inhuman conditions and a threat of being sent to a futile war in the east, they wisely took the time to slam back an Imperial Stout or two. After all, life can be a real ‘suka’, as they said in the old country. Big, black, bourgeois, blocky, belligerent, buxom, and scary- this is our version of the chaotic end of an era in a bottle."
[source: lagunitas.com]