Sam Smiths Imperial Stout

https://www.samuelsmithsbrewery.co.uk

Brewed by Samuel Smith Old Brewery 
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England

Samuel Smith’s is an independent brewery and pub owner based in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, is , founded in 1758. Its name goes back to the famous English brewer Samuel Smith.

The Old Brewery was established as the Backhouse & Hartley Brewery in 1758. In 1847, John Smith purchased the small brewery with funding provided by his father, a successful butcher and cattle dealer from Meanwood, Leeds, but soon built his own new brewery John Smith’s, close by. (the famous John Smiths we have today, as far as I can tell). John Smith’s brother William, who ran the business after John’s death in 1879, left the Old Brewery to his young nephew Samuel in 1886. Samuel enabled by the buoyant beer industry to open Samuel Smith’s Brewery under his own name and was able to compete with the established John Smith’s Brewery.

They brew a wide range of high quality beers made solely from authentic, natural ingredients (the same yeast strain used since the 1800’s), and according to the methods of 1758, (using open, stone fermenting vessels known as “Yorkshire Squares”), and the brewing water still comes from the same well sunk back in 1758.

Samuel Smith’s operates over 200 pubs – including rural, suburban, inner-city and city-centre ones, with over 20 pubs in central London. Most of the these pubs are traditional in their layout and decoration, think old wooden bar, fire place and dartboard. For these bars and fine establishments they produce a wide range of beers including bitters, stouts, porters, lagers, and fruit beers.

Sam Smiths pubs are somewhat seen as a throwback to years of yonder, as they are widely regarded as a very traditional and somewhat eccentric due to their continued insentience of using of dray horses, strict bans on music, mobile devices, tablets, e-books and laptops, with the aim of removing activities that discouraged conversation. The ban also includes “pictures of sport”. They also kept to low beer prices. All the better for it I say!

Having said that though, in October 2017, the brewery issued a chain-wide ban on the use of profanity in its pubs. The “zero-tolerance” policy calls for employees to cut off service to customers who use offensive language. It was reported that this policy, along with recent bans of groups identified as “undesirable” or potentially “rowdy” due to certain types of clothing worn, is part of a “traditional, “uncompromisingly Victorian” aesthetic” that the brewery tries to maintain in its pubs. Nah fuck that! Ha

Some respect to the brewery in that they were not too compliant with the whole fascist Covid-scamdemic coronavirus test and trace system in its pubs. Apparently some local councillors in West Yorkshire were giving them some stick for this. Fair dues, I will drink to that. 

Review: 355ml thin bottle of Sam Smiths Imperial Stout: 7% vol.

On the bottle, which is like a bloody book with all the writing on it, has “A rich flavourful brew of the type once exported from Britain to Imperial Russia”, which is interesting and leads to the question why was a traditional English brewery making Russian Imperial Stout?

Russian Emperor Peter the Great, while on a trip to the UK, took a great liking to the dark beer, and requested some be sent over. So this distinctive type of beer, originally brewed as a delicacy, was made stronger to withstand the abuses of shipping in foul weather and the long journey, to the Tsar, and Imperial Russia, least it go off and upset the noble man. But he loved it and it eventfully became a favourite of the Russian nobility, its popularity lasting. 

This was history’s first “imperial” strength version of a particular beer, and the term is now applied to other beer styles, like Imperial IPA. Imperial stout beers typically reach into double-digit ABV levels and are packed with flavor.

The good taste continues onto today with the beer winning gold at the World Beer Championship in 2008.

Wow, straight off the bat, right from the top coming off the bottle I can get a whiff of a powerful aroma, a very strong smell of black liquorice, and the expected porter smell. 

Smell is pure porter of roasted malts, molasses, and hints of coffee. Definitely noticeable anyway! 

It’s a bit intimidating with the smell, but once you get into it it works out ok. 

On pour getting a pitch black colour which looks good, a bit of a head that looks promising, but when it all settles down the head is quite small,…..still looks appetizing though. 

Standard enough look for a Russian porter, to be fair… full bodied, deep black look, thin head. 

No lacing, which tells its own story. 

The taste is one of dark roasted malts, with a milk chocolate and coffee variety, especially in the back end…..

Lovely aftertaste, really delicate and crisp on the tongue, love it…….like a coffee ice cream.

Dark chocolate and coffee, very strong flavours, all very good…..but soft on the palate at the same time, not offensive, has a great balance.  

Not quite as good as a Guinness (my usual go to Stout), but they have that same full bodied smoothness that rounds off in the end…OK its an imperial stout, and that is the difference to my usual Guinness I know, I know,, but for that its good. and I love that the 7% is very well hidden making this a very tasty stout. 

A stout with a lovely smooth feel to it. Will try again…………..

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