For this week’s Brew Review, I went with something a bit on the heavy side, and one of the 22-ouncers from the “big bottle” shelf of the store: Great Divide‘s Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout. Yes, I did another Great Divide review last week. So much for diversity, huh?
I originally picked this beer up as a gift for a friend last year and, lucky for me, he popped it open that night so I could get a good sampling of it. Right away you can see that this is a special kind of stout. The head is very brown and the smell is a kind of smoky cedar. Honestly, at first scent, you’ll wonder what you’re about to get into drinking this.
If you’re drinking it before a meal, you’re likely going to want to finish it up first. The smoky, chocolaty flavor and the characteristic heaviness of a stout goes a lot better with (or as) a dessert than with most foods. The color is nearly completely black, and there’s no mistaking that this beer was chilling out in an oak barrel for a spell. At 9.5% ABV, your head’s going to be feeling a full, large bottle of this if you’re being greedy.
As far as stouts go, this was definitely a very good one for me, but I wouldn’t call it one of my top favorites. The unique characteristics of this beer hold a special place for me and for special occasions, but I wouldn’t stock a fridge with a bunch of these; it’s good once in a while as a treat, but not something I’d want on-hand.
So far Great Divide has a great track record for me and, as it turns out, for others as well — the Yeti is rated a perfect 100 over at RateBeer. I’d definitely put this in the 90-98 range, but perfect? I’m not so sure, but I’ll report back again if I change my mind.
Clacked by Keith McDuffee 
on Feb 20, 2009 @ 15:35 EST5EDT
