Review: 110K+OT (2009)

This is my first beer from Cigar City Brewing Co. It has a strange name, 110K+OT. They plan to change it each year: same name, different beer. This time it's a modified Imperial Russian Stout (they're calling it an India Russian Imperial Stout because they've used a lot of hops), a strong stout that was originally brewed in England and shipped to the Russian court.

On to the review:

Pours super black with a head like chocolate milk.

It has a roasted, smoky aroma with big chocolate notes and a hint of hops.

The taste is all about roasted malt flavors. It's smoky and coffee-like with bits of burnt toast thrown in. I'm not getting the extra hops, but that's probably because I've blown my palate on double IPAs. The very high alcohol level is almost totally hidden.

The body is thick and creamy, almost like a milkshake. This is one of the thickest beers I've had.

For an extreme beer, this is under control. It's much more drinkable than, say, Brooklyn's Black OPS. Nonetheless, I'm only drinking half of the bottle tonight. I'm not risking another hangover.

I must say that I'm just a tiny bit let down by this beer after reading all the raves about Cigar City on BeerAdvocate. I must have had my hopes set too high, though, because there's nothing wrong with this beer. Must be like what happened to a lot of people with the "Star Wars" prequels.