Portsmouth Brewery Kate the Great Russian Imperial Stout

By JASON AND TODD ALSTRÖM

del.ico.us | digg it! | reddit!

print | email | 0 Comments

If there were ever a reason to get your ass to the Portsmouth Brewery in Portsmouth, NH, Kate the Great is that reason. At this sister brewery to the Smuttynose Brewing Company, legendary brewmaster Tod Mott has created what many believe to be one of the best Russian Imperial Stouts (RIS) on planet Earth. We've covered the history of RIS in the past, but for those of you who are still not in the know, an RIS is a big, bold, rich and complex stout originally brewed in England for the Russian Czar and imperial court of the 19th century. Anyway, let's meet Kate.

The Taste

Dense, opaque, black -- like motor oil -- with a rich coffee-colored head that eventually drops to a ringed lace. Gorgeous. Big, bold nose full of molasses and chocolate cake with a glass of milk on the side. Spicy hops blended with sherry and a tease of anise and char in the back. Tobacco, too. ("So ... damn ... complex," said like Shatner.) Smooth, full-bodied and viscous in the feel. Quite spicy up front, with an herbal, lightly citric hop smack steeping in a borderline boozy, peppery and warming alcohol -- a chop to the throat that burns just a bit. Malt characters run deep with tangy blackstrap molasses, honey, treacle syrup, char, brownie/chocolate, burnt coffee and an interesting dark fruitiness that's akin to prunes. Finish is quite tame with powdery sweet chocolate. More hop spice, fumy alcohol (not too hot) and a hint of smoke in the linger.

Final Thoughts

Our score: A+ (world-class)

BeerAdvocate.com overall score: A+

Weighing in at roughly 10% alcohol by volume, Kate is indeed great. Balanced (for what it is), insanely complex and ranking right up there with the best of its style. In fact, it recently scored the best beer in America in our December issue of BeerAdvocate magazine and it's currently the #3 beer online. As such, demand is high and beer geeks in the area are using it to trade and obtain beers from other geeks throughout the country. We recommend that you drive up, grab a growler (roughly four pints for $20) and enjoy this brew while it lasts -- they have a really tasty Imperial IPA available now, too.

FOR MORE INFO: PORTSMOUTHBREWERY.COM

FOR MORE BEER EDUCATION: BEERADVOCATE.COM

RESPECT BEER.