Stoudts Fat Dog Stout (Vintages through 2003)
The darkest of the beers we make, this imperial-style stout has a full body, a rich hearty dark-chocolate taste and a coffee-like finish. Its surprisingly smooth drinkability is enhanced by the careful blending of the finest English Kent Golding and Fuggle hops.
3.6
151 reviews
Adamstown, United States
Community reviews
(750ml bottle, 2003 vintage) Pours a hazy dark brown body with an average brown head. Aroma of chocolate, dark fruits, and vinous. Flavor of roasted malt, vinous, and lactos.
2003: deep color with fine tight bubbles. Coffe and warmth fill the nose. A smooth mouthfeel leads to coffe and malt tones. Seems stale rather than aged.
2003: Pour is brownish black with a thin tan head...toasty cocoa nose...lots of sweet cocoa in the flavor, but this is just over aged...I can imagine it being much more delicious 2 years ago...
Courtesy of Pailhead. Couldn’t decipher the date on the bottle, just 11/01. Thin oily black with minimal head, just film, and a ring of bubbles. Huge chocolate malt aroma up front, with some sour fruit in the background. Flavor again, chocolate malt with faint roasted grains. Sourness is starting to take over the flavor though, still drinkable, but bet it was one heck of a beer a few years ago.
Bottle: (3/11/01 or 7/11/01) Courtesy of Secret Santa. Aroma has lots of chocolate fruitiness with a hint of coffee. Pours a dark bown with no transparency and a moderate tan head that lasts a minute or so. Chocolate up front with a light roasted coffee presence in the finish. There’s a light fruity sourness throughout. I’m sure the sourness was not intended, but it seems to work and blend well with beer. Chocolate presence increases as it warms. After 5 years and and only 6.5% abv, this has held up rather well.
Bottle shared by kp, best by 2/27/99: Nearly opaque dark brown pour has a thin ring of tan head. Sweet, mild dark fruit and oatmeal aroma has nice subtle aged complexity. Body starts with a semi-sweet milk chocolate flavor and lots of dark fruit complexity. Seems to have aged very nicely. Probably not too "imperial" but enjoyable nonetheless. I’m really surprised this has lasted so long.
1998 Vintage: Yes you read that right. Poured a very dark brown color with a thin light tan head. Big chocolate aroma with light coffe (with milk added). Sweet. Very light notes of soy. Chocolate flavor and light roasted malt. This aged amazingly well. Medium bodied and a big carbonation.
Bottle from Indy 12/10 gathering, thanks to BBB63 even though he couldn’t attend. Nice dark brown to black color. The aroma is really roasty and a bit of chocolate. There is a definate fruity flavor. Very active as it runs through the palate, almost too much, but a fairly full beer as well.
Almost see through black, over carbonated, roasty chocolate nose. Big and almost fruity and slight chocolate taste. But still over carbonated in your mouth.
Bottle. Thanks to BBB63 at the Indy Rateparty. Pours oil black with ruby notes in the light. Aroma is roasty chocolate that is sweet towards the end of the nose. Dark Chocolate flavor sweetens as it goes down. Leads to a sour finish with very light notes of apple and grape. Smooth medium to full body.
(Bottle courtesy ’BBB63’ Indy tasting 12/10/05) - label matches this one - Aroma is dark chocolate, cranberry, and roasted chocolate malt. Pours black with a ton of brown head (bottle was a gusher). Flavor is fruitier than I would expect. Chocolate and more chocolate with a bit of coffee in the finish. A bit one dimensional. Palate is carbonated to the point of offensive fizziness for an imperial stout. Tasty, but not an impressive imperial stout.
12.08.05 765ml bottle, dated 11/19/03. Black and slick as old motor oil below a lively and lasting canvas colored head. Aroma is dark, roasty, and mostly chocolatey. There is a certain note of oxidation that comes across as a fruity grain and a touch of cardboard. The flavor is dark and chocolatey, semi-bitter from the roast and maybe even the remnants of some grassy (now more cardboard) hops. A mineral character that comes in with the bitterness at the end lingers long on the palate, a slight earthy snap that reminds of fresh picked blueberries. How ’bout that? Anyway, this was a good find and a pleasing beer.
765 mL, capped bottle (can’t make out the vintage date): fluffy ivory head with large bubbles and hints of chocolate. Initially large, the foam dies into a grey film on top of the dark black body. Golden brown, transparent edges. Sweet chocolately aroma with freshly cracked black pepper, a hint of ginger, and toasted almonds and cherry skins. Rich flavours of dried figs, truffles, raspberries, crisp alcohol, and buttery roasted nuts. Smooth and creamy palate, I fear this is yet another example (several Dogfish Head examples and a variety of others) that are really amazing bottle conditioned beers delivered in large bottles, turned to a filtered 12 oz bottle that is not quite as good…perhaps they will do these again some day, because this is fantastic.
12.30.03 vintage. Pours an inky black with a big beige head. Aroma is roasty and rich, with loads of chocolate and cappucino. This is not ’Imperial’ by any means! Body is a bit watery, but very smooth and complex for a weaker beer. We Americans are so jaded thanks to big beers, but I think this brew deserves more respect than it gets. Perhaps its Imperial designation, which is wrong, makes raters come up disappointed. Anyway, this is a tasty stout, with a good amount of roastiness and plenty of chocolate and coffee in there, as all good stouts have. Finishes sweet and dry, with a slight twinge of hops.
Bottles 11/12/2001 - Black pour with lasting tan colored head. Slightly vineous aroma, roasted malt. Almost smells like a barleywine. Well, this is too bad. This is definately past its prime, acidic sour start, and that dominates. I catch some roastiness to finish, however this is nearly undrinkable.
Bottle dated 11/12/01 and purchased from Half-Time in Poughkeepsie, NY last summer. When I purchased this, I thought it was an Imperial Stout. I thought that I got a steal with it being pre-aged. Well, I guess this ended up being a 6% regular stout that was just really old. Sweet, chocolate aroma with some molasses in the nose and a bit of cardboardy oxidation in the nose. Opaque black color with a tan head that is rather quickly dissipating. Start/middle is very sour, astringent, yuck. The finish is somewhat redeeming with some roasty and chocolate notes. Unforutnately, though, this is way past its prime and undrinkable. Was probably a very good beer once.
SCREW THIS CRAP. THERE I SAID IT. THIS IS THE 2ND BEER I’VE HAD THAT’S MADE ME MAD. 750ml bottle. Been sitting around for a few days. I open it. EXPLOSION. OVERCARBONATED. BIG TIME. Usually I wouldn’t care. This time it was all over white fabric. 1/5 FOR APPEARANCE I DON’T CARE. Aroma is chocolate dominated with some roast and coffee in there. Flavor is exactly the same with some acidity. It’s one thing to have a light yellow beer spill on white fabric. But for a stout, that’s a problem. Good thing this garbage is retired. If you want your clothes and blankets ruined, Blanchards in Boston has a ton of these things. To quote the comic book guy from The Simpsons - worst imperial stout EVER!
(750 ml bottles: Obtained in trades with Eyedrinkale and bkelley68, thanks Mike and Brian!) Vintage 27-Feb-03 The head that just would not quit. Pouring this beer into my tulip, half the glass is filled with light brown head, and after perusing the Ratebeer forum for 15 minutes, the head is still quite sizeable. Dark brown color as it pours, but black once in the large glass. Chocolate seems to be the primary flavor here, quite toasty, sweet, fruity, and malty as well, but roast and bitterness are actually fairly light in comparison. I like the flavor, but I’m not even convinced it’s truly an Imperial Stout. In many ways, I think I actually prefer this version of Fat Dog Stout to the new, beefed up version (which most definitely IS an Imperial Stout). There’s much more balance here, the roasty bitterness isn’t oppressive, and the alcohol, which is lower in ABV, is not an assertive schoolyard bully. I’m really digging the toasty finish. The only negative, compared to the new version is the nose, which in this beer, is fairly malty, but also smells vaguely like paint. Body is lighter, what I’d characterize as medium "plus", and the palate is fairly smooth and very fizzy on the tongue. It’s a prettier beer, as the head is still going strong, 45 minutes after pouring the beer. A gentle swirl yields a replentished fizzy topping like when you pour a soda. There’s not much lace, but I really think my tulip glasses are not lace friendly. While I acknowledge that this beer has had a year or so longer to age, I think this beer demonstrates that bigger is not always better. Bring back the old Fat Dog Stout! And wow, I still have another bottle left!
Pours an opaque black with a thick (2 inch) rich brown head. Smell is malty and chocolatey, lightly bitter.
Tastes of coffee and chocolate. Creamy too, like a latte. Sweet dark chocolate versus bitter chocolate that you get from many stouts. Lightly oaty. Full bodied with sweet chocolate mocha aftertaste. Very smooth and drinkable for a big flavorful stout. Very pleasant drinking experience.
Bottle 4/13/04 (exactly 1 year old) Pours almost completely black with a big fizzy brown head. The aroma is sweet and green grape-like with a little chocolate. The flavor is dark chocolate, some coffee, and dark fruits with a subtle banana hints in the finish. A bit better than I remebered. Sorry to see it go but those shoes were filled quick with the new impy.
765 mL bottled on 4/13/04 (I’m putting this rating here b/c of the bottle size and that there’s no way this stuff was 10% ABV). Quick whiff of noble hops, followed by chocolate and coffee with a hint of caramel. Nearly black, good sized tan head. Nice chocolate and coffee flavor, plenty of roast charater, herbal hops. Medium-full body, lingering dry roasty finish.
Found a lonely old bottle at my local shop. Light color for the style, medium brown with a light tan head. The aroma is choco-coffee and a bit grainy. The hops have really faded so the flavor is dominated by cold coffee and some vinous notes. The body is medium and rather thin for the assigned style. Interesting seems almost a porter to me.
Deep brown, almost black body. Light brown head. Nose is cocoa, raisons and coffee. Taste is bitter chocolate, espresso , dark fruits, almonds and hazelnuts. Finish is smooth and somewhat bitter.
July 24 2003 bottling date. Pours a medium brown, some black and a light olive brown tinge on the edges. Bottle conditioned, but not opaque at all. Huge foamy tan head, that takes over the glass. Reminds me of Cisco brews. Especially in the nose, which is full of yeast and light vinous notes. However, the first thing I notice here, is the clean, smooth oaty notes, sugary and rich, with hints of chocolate, light banana and a touch of coffee. Good amount of prune-like fruit flavors. Flavor matches this well, starting out yeasty and oaty with a big prune wininess. Chocolate and light dry nutty malt on the finish, with a touch of English hops and a very lively carbonation. Body is medium to medium full. Well done, no touches of alcohol. An imperial in taste but not so in body or force. I like restrained not overdone beers and this one is no exception.
Initial tall tan head that settles to a smaller dense lid of bubbles. Oats, malt and mild rye toast aromas. Light sweet start with a mild acidic middle and stronger acidic linger. Somewhat light and biting on te tongue. Interesting but not overly exciting. Thanks to DocLock.
Bottle pours dark dark brown, almost black, medium frothy tannish head, with so-so lacing. Aroma is heavy on the dry semi-sweet chocolate, light coffee notes, and maybe some cocoa. Flavor is forwardly coffee like, chocholate, cocoa... fairly tasty. Decent body, medium mouthfeel. I was hoping it would be a bit creamier but alas, it was not. Finishes somewhat spritzy, slightly sweet, with more coffee and chocolate/cocoa flavor. Overall, a decent Impy but there was no richness to it, and 6% seems rather light for the style.
On draft at the Stoudtberg brewery. Full and rich dry stout (by no means an imperial stout), mellow roastedness - yes, surprisingly smooth and drinkable.
Dark and beautiful, with a gigantic tan head. Nose was mostly coffeee and sweet chocolate. First taste is milky and full of oatmeal. Chocolate and coffee through to the finish. Very light on alcohol, very light body, which may not be true to the style, but was still a solid stout. Enjoyable!
On tap at David Copperfield’s. Poured a dark black orange with a roasted chocolate aroma. Taste had a hint of anise with espresso, chocolate and almonds.
WCCII:Dark amber coloured beer with a medium creamy head. The aroma is roasted coffee and tobacco. Finish and aftertaste is dry with taste of mocca.