Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout

Brewed By: Two Brothers Brewing Company in Warrenville, Illinois

Purchased: 6-Pack from Friar Tucks in Illinois; 2011

Style/ABV: Russian Imperial Stout, 9.1%

It's been a while since I've talked about the Two Brothers Brewing Company. Two Brothers are based out of Warrenville, Illinois, a town not far from Chicago. Two brothers was founded in 1996 by brother Jason and Jim Ebel. Their brewery and Tap House Restaurant are both located in Warrenville. Their distribution and production seems to be increasing with each year, and along with their beer you can buy home brewing equipment and supplies at the Tap House Restaurant. 

Doesn't this scream Black Metal?

I love Two Brothers, but I'm still a firm believer they need to transport their website from 1992 to 2011. Today's beer, Northwind Stout, is a Winter Seasonal release from the Two Brothers. The website states that this beer has firm roasty maltiness balanced with lots of hops. The beer clocks in at an impressive 9.1% ABV, and packs an okay 45 IBUs. The BJCP clocks most Ruskie Stouts at 50-90 IBUs. 

I have a random tangent that I need to quickly discuss, and I'm sure this will come up again. Russian Imperial Stouts have always remind me of Black Metal. Both styles are extreme and attract a geek audience. It's really no surprise at all that Jester King Craft Brewing would come up with their Black Metal Imperial Stout. The Northwind bottle art reminds me of Immortal and Enslaved. And nothing says winter like some Black Metal. Anyway, I'm going to crank Enslaved's album Below the Lights while I review this beer. And yes, I realize Enslaved is more Viking/Folk metal than pure Black Metal.

Two Brothers Northwind Imperial Stout

Popping the top off the bottle yielded about 5 seconds worth of smoke. I was also greeted with some rising carbonation, but it never overflowed the bottle. The beer pours with a thick, coffee-colored head. I got about 5-fingers worth of head, and the head has a ton of finely packed bubbles. The beer is dark black or brown in low light, but held to bright light you can see that it is probably dark brown or ruby red in color. Head retention is excellent, so I'm guessing the beer is well carbonated. There are alcohol legs, and spotty lacing is already on my glass.

I'm getting a lot of roasted malts on the nose. I'm smelling roasted malts; burnt molasses or burnt marshmallow; hints of campfire. There is some dark or burnt chocolate. I'm picking up hints of meatiness with the roasted malts; bacon and ham. I'm also picking up this meaty, dense note - it reminds me of thick steak or heavy portobello mushrooms. There is a hint of the looming 9.1% ABV on the nose as well, and I'm also smelling a smooth, creamy, or lactose type note.

This is very creamy, smooth, and roasty. There is a lot of roasted malt, with hints of wood and campfire. I swear I am tasting a very silky smooth lactose note, with hints of silky chocolate. The back end is woody and dry, with lots of roast. There are hints of sweetness, and some pulls towards caramel or a dark fruit. There are also pulls towards coffee, but nothing definitive.

The mouthfeel on this is smooth as hell, and creamy. This drinks medium-light for a 9.1% Russian Imperial Stout. I want to say this beer is overly carbonated...but I'm not sure that is the issue. The beer almost tastes oxidized. This has okay palate depth for a Russian Imperial Stout, but I wouldn't call it overly complex. The front end is roast, hints of coffee and sweet dark fruits; the middle is more roast and burnt chocolate; and the back end is roast, wood, campfire, burnt molasses, and dryness. The finish is dry and woody, and I like it. And the 9.1% ABV absolutely disappears which is an incredible feat.

Rating: Average
Score: 56% 

This is very drinkable, but a touch roast-forward. There are a lot of delicious roasted malts in this, and a great woody and dry finish. But that drives the experience. I'm also slightly perplexed by the carbonated or oxidized mouthfeel.

Here is what I really like about this beer: the price and availability. The fact that it is smooth as hell and that the 9.1% ABV is non-existent. I'm also digging the cool bottle artwork.

This might be worth checking out if Two Brothers is in your area. This is not a bad Russian Imperial Stout, just a slightly flawed if not less-than-memorable one. I wouldn't pay a ton of money to ship this beer across the country.