Name: Serpent’s Stout
Style: Imperial Stout
Brewery: The Lost Abbey website
Country: USA
Region: San Marcos, California
ABV: 11.0% Abv
How served: 750 ml corked & caged bottle poured into Kastaar tulip.
My Overall Opinion: Amazing. 
I paired this beer with: nothing, just an after dinner drink.
Tasted on: Wednesday March 16th, 2011
Note: This bottle is dated 2009. I was a little worried about the condition of this bottle as I noticed that the cork was working its way out of the bottle despite the cage and that the exposed cork was discolored. So instead of aging this for another 12- 24 months I decided it was time to open this up and find out how it has held up.
When I pulled out the cork I heard only the slightest hiss. Now I was really worried about this bottle. The beer poured a pitch black and to my delight it had a one finger dark brown head meaning that it did not go totally flat due to a cork problem. The head did dissipate quickly and left a very minimal but sticky lacing on the glass. The nose was of dark chocolate, dark dried fruit, vanilla and roasted coffee. The taste was sweet of dark roasted malts with strong notes of chocolate upfront, then milder hints of roasted coffee, vanilla and some dark dried fruits. The mouthfeel was of a medium to heavy viscosity and was as smooth as silk on the tongue, with low carbonation (either by design or due to the cork issue). The drinkability was amazingly good for an 11%abv brew. It is a sipper for such, but he alcohol level was not the reason, it was just that I wanted this bottle to last forever. Like most Imperial Stouts it greatly improves as it warmed in the glass.
On the Label:
From the beginning of time, it was so decreed, “From the this Tree of Knowledge, you shall not eat this fruit”. Soon enough, the Serpent slithered through the Garden convincing Eve to taste the nectar from this forbidden fruit. Once bitten and shamed, she then tempted Adam. Together, their actions brought Original Sin upon our world.
Discontent to rest on his laurels the Serpent continued his cunning ways bringing forth more temptations. Ultimately, he foisted upon the world his own Serpent Stout – a liquid so dark and viscous that all who tasted soon fell victim to this evil incarnate. Some turned to false prophets seeking advice. None of it mattered. Each struggle revealed the battle between Good and Evil. And now that you are holding a bottle of this liquid, it is certain he has tempted even you… So, welcome to our Darker Side of Life – home of the Serpent Stout’s Original Sin and the tastiest beers known to man.
From their Website:
The history of the bible and religion is indeed the struggle of good vs. evil. Our Serpent’s Stout recognizes the evil of the dark side that we all struggle with.
This is a massively thick and opaque beer that begs the saints to join the sinners in their path to a black existence.
Tasting Notes:
Pours dark and thick, with a creamy mocha-colored head and aromas of roasted malts, dark chocolate and french roast coffee.
The mouthfeel is full, smooth and round on the tongue. The taste is rich with deep roasted malts, cocoa, coffee and a touch of vanilla balanced perfectly against the alcohol to create an excellent winter warmer.
ABV: 10.5%
Format: Draught, 22oz Bottles
Availability: Early winter release
