I saw this at Green's the other night while shopping for the Belgian tasting and since I enjoyed the Left Hand Milk Stout so much, thought I'd give it a whirl.
Left Hand pours a dark brown, opaque around the edges. Small head that dissolves into a fine lacing over the top.
Smells like chocolate, coffee, and a vague sweetness, nothing terribly defined but inviting.
Mouthfeel is full - thick and rich with only moderate carbonation.
The taste is all malt; chocolate and coffee dominating with a slight hop in the aftertaste. Not super sweet but not very well-balanced in terms of a bitterness and fruit flavor that an imperial stout should have. The 10% ABV is noticeable only a slight slickness that the mouth gets used to by glass-end.
Overall, a good beer though a bit one-dimensional in terms of presentation. The big exception to this one would be price - Left Hand is expensive and if you're going to spend the money on an Imperial Stout, buy Sam Smith's. But try Left Hand at least once. It's new the Atlanta market and perhaps the price will drop soon.
Labels: beer reviews