Aroma: “Vanilla, brown sugar, caramel, moderate roast, light chocolate, fruit loops, tangerine, malt aromas. The expected imperial stout elements are there, but the overall aroma impression is of a dry stout.”

Flavor: “Flavor has some of the complexity the nose lacked. Mocha with toffee and bready malt, some coconut. The flavor is very self contained—nice shot of mocha, swirls of malt. The nice caramel-sweetness roast needs a bump. This is more in the imperial porter or imperial brown ale range.”

Overall: “Imperial stout on the rounder side. Maybe slightly thin, which makes it even easier to drink. Little bits of complexity fade in and out as you continue drinking it. Fun little variations in the sips—coconuts, whimsical. Taken on its own, each sip is nice, but imperial stout as a style is more typically made to be savored so there's a bit of a gap between expectation and flavor that requires recalibration.”