Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Sierra Nevada Brewing Narwhal Imperial Stout

Sierra Nevada Brewing Narwhal Imperial Stout
Style: Imperial Stout
Alcohol Content: 10.2%
From: Chico, California, USA
Purchased From: Beer Boutique, Putney
http://www.sierranevada.com/ 

Located in Chico, California, Sierra Nevada Brewing is one of the top craft breweries currently operating in the United States. Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale is the second best-selling craft beer in the United States, behind the Boston Beer Company Samuel Adams Boston Lager. It is currently the sixth-largest brewing company in the United States.The brewery produced 786,000 barrels of beer in 2010.

The brewery was named "Green Business of the Year" by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2010 for its practices in sustainability.

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was founded in 1979, with founders Ken Grossman and Paul Camusi expanding their homebrewing hobby into a brewery in Chico, California. Along with the brewery's location, Grossman claims the company's name comes from his love of hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.With $50,000 in loans from friends and family, Grossman & Camusi rented a 3,000-square-foot (280 m2) warehouse and pieced together discarded dairy equipment and scrap yard metal to create their brewing equipment.They later were able to acquire second-hand copper brewing kettles from Germany before moving to their larger, current brewing facility in 1989.

Narwhal Imperial Stout

Colour: Pours a jet fuel black with a densely packed, tan coloured foam. It looks so thick in the glass you could mistake it for tar. The head will slowly die away after a few minutes in the glass but what's left will cling to the glass as if it's life depends on it. So far, so good.

Aroma: Rich, dark cocoa notes present themselves as soon as you pop the cap. Subtle notes of yeast or beefy marmite are also present and add a real sense of depth to the aroma profile. You certainly will love or hate the perfume that's for sure.

Body: As I eluded to in my above colour description, this drink is as thick as Paris Hilton. As soon as you take a gulp, your mouth will be flooded like an oil slick. Every crevasse of your palate will be covered like a bird near the Exxon oil slip. Luckily, this sensation is surprisingly brief as due to the lack of bitterness and lack of any clogging sensation at all. Very smooth and a true pleasure to drink.

Taste: Subtlety is the name of the game with this beer. There are no big, bold flavours in this beer, just a subtle yet complex set of tastes that have been blended perfectly together. A real melting pot of coffee, dark chocolate, liquorice and marmite are all present. The ABV is masked beautifully by both these flavours and a pleasant sweetness I have yet to come across in an imperial stout. For me, this is one of the best imperial stouts I have ever tasted. A true sipper without a hint of bitterness in the aftertaste. Well worth a repeat visit.

Narwhal Imperial Stout


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