Rogue Imperial Stout 2008

Rogue is an American Brewery based out of Newport, Oregon. You can find most of their huge variety of ales all over the place, and many distributors carry them. Normally expect to pay around seven bucks for something like a Hazelnut Brown. This one cost me just under twenty.
Much in the same way that India Pale Ales are much stronger and hoppier than regular Pale Ale, Imperial Stouts are often sky-high in alcohol and hop content. Both beers required heavy hopping and high alcohol percentages to survive transport: the IPAs went to far-off India, and the Imperial Stouts to wintry Moscow. The "Imperial" moniker refers to the beer's popularity with the Czars and their entourages.

At 11% alcohol-by-volume and as inkily black as Stephen Harper's soul, Rogue's version makes Guinness look like a white wine spritzer for effete art critics. It's the kind of beer you'd expect Boris Yeltsin to order, in-between liver transplants. There is very little carbonation, and an overwhelming sense of density: it's almost like drinking dark chocolate cream. There's little sweetness though: this is not a malty bock like Vancouver Island Brewing's Hermannator. Cellaring the Stout (it's an '08) has allowed the alcohol's bite to mellow, but it has done little to mute the fact that there are a hell of a lot of hops in this beer.
Most stouts are of the Dry Irish variety: roasted overtones, not much bite. This stout snaps like distilled alligator.

Highly recommended, but share it with a few friends. An alternate suggestion would be North Coast Brewing's Old Rasputin, available at most BCLDB stores.