Every year, many micro-brewers produce something that they are especially proud of, something that is eagerly awaited and often bragged about by the fortunate few who have had it either on tap on bottled. Showing up at a party or a beer tasting with a bottle of this, is akin to being the guy that drives up to the 20yr High School reunion in the BMW.
Deschutes, has one of these…It’s called the Abyss. While technically not a “MicroBrewery”, as they produce several times the 15,000 barrel output that defines the upper limit of a brewery than can be called “Micro”, Deschutes is/are still considered an outfit that adheres to the craftbeer standard and philosophy of adjunct free, quality ingredients meaning exclusively Barley, Water, Hops and Yeast, and (relatively) small batches . In a way, an extension of the German Reinheitsgebot law Germany passed in the 16th century that specified strict requirements on what could be called “Beer”.
Abyss, an imperial stout that was first made in 2006 and since then made itself known as a top tier Imperial Stout in the country. Certainly in the west. There are a dozen or so “Impys” that belong in the discussion of some of the best in the country. Stone, Oskar Blues, 3 Floyds, Alesmith, Bells, and several others, all are worth mentioning in this stable.
I am having an Abyss as I type this and it is the first time I have had it on tap in a couple years at least. I have a few bottles of the ’06 and ’07 stashed in my “cellar” but on tap is the best way to truly experience the subtleties of what the brewer intended. My oft mentioned fvorite beer outlet, Brewforia Beer Market put his little gem on its tap line earlier today and my day-timer was immediately adjusted to allow for this window of opportunity.
At first I was concerend that the tap would run out any minute so I orderd a snifter of it right away, and drank it witha friend rather quickly and as it was quite cold, some of the subtle complexity was lost on my haste. Later on my second one of the night, I was able to let it warm up a bit, since a littel closer to room temperature is better to experance the full flavor profile of this beer.
Abyss is moderately sweet, plenty bitter and rather smokey. Licorice and to a lesser extent, molasses are up front and a nice smokey almost fireplace or campfire soot and smokiness is a main player as well. Carbonation is rather lively for the style, as Imperial Stouts are typically a little on the soft side. A bit of a Tootsie Roll calng card is left behind as the soothing sting of semi-sweet chocolate sizzles the palatte on the way down.
There are lots of very good beers in this style, some of which I have mentioned earlier. Abyss is near and dear to my heart as a Deschutes fan and a PNW native, and I am always glad to see it come out each winter. It is very tempting to secure another case of this years edition but at the 13-14$ per bottle price tag that it demands these days, that is a little hard to do. I still have several from the ’06 edition that still have the 5.99$ price tag on them. That in itself is evidence to the skyrocketing popularity that this beer since it’s inception and elite craft beer in general has come to in this country.
