RIS Swap - Yuri's Beers

Per the swap rules, here is my thread.

I substituted Carafa III for the light chocolate. I meant to use dehusked Carafa II, but I ordered the wrong stuff and elected to use it anyway. So, my 888 might be a tad darker and roastier than it should be.

Yuri_Rage said:

I substituted Carafa III for the light chocolate. I meant to use dehusked Carafa II, but I ordered the wrong stuff and elected to use it anyway. So, my 888 might be a tad darker and roastier than it should be.

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Pfft, you're off the team.




(Still no word on my Southerly wanderings...)

Recieved my very cool and very shipping friendly aluminum bottles yesterday, can't wait to give them a taste run....

All right, this was my first time using a BJCP score sheet and accompanying style guide, but I needed something to base my evaluation on....before the scoresheet I did taste one without, and I really enjoyed it. That being said, here's what the sheet says....


Yuri's 080808 Russian Imperial Stout
13.F Russian Imperial Stout

Aroma 12/12
Rich nose with noticable floral hops, notes of caramel, brown sugar, and prunes or raisins. No noticable alcohol character.

Appearance 2/3
Jet black, with a thin head of dark tan/light brown dense bubbles that dissipated very quickly. Had a noticable viscosity on the glass.

Flavor 19/20
Intense initial flavor with strong coffee and high bitterness, leading into a relatively dry, roasty, and hoppy bitterness, followed by a great warm feeling all over

Mouthfeel 4/5
Medium body, feels light in the mouth for the amount of flavor that it delivers. Slightly alcoholic feel with great lingering flavor.

Overall Impression 9/10
A nice beer, not quite suited for mid-august heat, but with a great feeling from drinking it, I would have loved to have had it from the tap.

Total 46/50

And plus one point for the great aluminum bottles that he sent it in.

Thanks Yuri!

I didn't use a score sheet, I went off my own ruminations. I'll try one for BM's beer.

Had some head with intial pour, then it dissapated. Black as death and twice as ugly. There's a fruity nose(not sure what kind), but then with sipping roastiness takes over, rushing over the palatte. If I look for it, I can taste raisins or dates, but it's very subtle. Gives an aftertaste like coffee, but it's not unpleasant.

I don't know if the metallic bottle it was in is affecting the flavor. I wonder if I'm actually tasting metal, or it's all in my head. I can't detect any alcohol flavor at all, but I do feel its warmth as I get to the bottom of the glass. I'd bedder get this all typed up beforaI s tart to get drunker.

Great beer, I love it, but man this is not a session beer!

EvilTOJ said:

I'd bedder get this all typed up beforaI s tart to get drunker.

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Heh, yep, that's why it took me a couple of different sittings to get through all my reviews!

Sadly, I think that all three of the samples sent were either infected or didn't survive the shipping heat. I really dug the alum bottles and the packaging was top notch (not a peep of sloshing when you moved the package). The aroma was sharply sour with a corky chardonay like scent & the flavor was lactic sour with an overwhelming burnt/charcoal taste. Given the aroma/flavor, it's a pretty sure bet they were infected.

Damn. I've sampled nearly half of the bottles so far, and I didn't get any lactic notes at all. Sour/chardonnay doesn't sound good in the least. Burnt/charcoal sounds about right but should've been balanced with some residual sweetness along with some esters. I'm inclined to blame the heat, but I can't rule out infection (or infection accelerated by heat). Should've shipped sooner!

I should mention that since receipt, they have been stored in a cellar @ 69-70 degrees. The intensity of the sour/lactic character has increased with each progressive sampling. None were gushers or excessively foamy.