North Coast Brewing has been in Louisiana for a little while now and I couldn't be happier! Their beers can be found at Calandro's among other local stores with a good beer selection. I've previously featured their Brother Thelonious and Cru D'Or and this one is one of their more popular beers, the Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout. The style is characterized by high alcohol contents, and a heavy malt presence. Much more rich and thick than something like a Guinness but typically more bitter and chocolaty than high-alcohol malty beers like doppelbocks. It's definitely not a style for someone getting into craft beer for the first time, but it has slowly become one of my favorites.
This one was poured from a 12 oz. bottle into my trusty Samuel Smith imperial pint glass. It featured a dark chocolaty brown color with a tan head that lingered throughout the drinking. Very nice appearance to this one and a great start.
The aroma is a dominant malty chocolate. Delicious. The taste follows through on the aroma. A little bit muted though... I wish more malty chocolate flavors came through. A little thinner than I was hoping for with the style. This is a strong one too... at 9% I wouldn't WANT to drink a lot of these in one sitting, but it's certainly good enough to think about it.
The aroma is a dominant malty chocolate. Delicious. The taste follows through on the aroma. A little bit muted though... I wish more malty chocolate flavors came through. A little thinner than I was hoping for with the style. This is a strong one too... at 9% I wouldn't WANT to drink a lot of these in one sitting, but it's certainly good enough to think about it.
This is one of the better Russian Imperial Stouts we can get locally, so if you want to check out the style, pick up a 4-pack and share some with your friends!
My rating: A-
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