ABV: 8.4%

IBU: 39

I first met the team at Reuben’s Brews in early 2013 at their brewery in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. At that time, they had already finished brewing their 50th batch of beer and they had been open for about six months. This is an impressive and important feature of Reuben’s Brews, as well as a very good reason to find their beer next time you’re in the Seattle area. Brewmaster Adam Robbings prioritizes giving his customers as many options as possible on the brewery’s twelve taps and brews in smaller batches in order to keep the recipes true to form. The emphasis on taste and the drinker’s experience has resulted in a plethora of awards and recognition for the family-owned brewery, including 15 medals at the World Beer Championships since opening in August 2012.

During my fateful first visit, I tasted about six of Robbings’ masterpieces and I’ve been “sampling” Reuben’s Brews beer as often as possible ever since, which is why I was thrilled when I stopped by my local craft beer shop and discovered that they had bottles of the Imperial Oatmeal Stout waiting for me to take them home.

The Imperial Oatmeal Stout is responsible for two of Reuben’s Brews’ 15 World Beer Championship medals, winning silver in 2012 and gold in 2013, and this well-crafted oatmeal stout lives up to its reputation. It pours an opaque black with a slight tan head that leaves moderate lacing along the glass and greets the nose with aromas of roasted oats, chocolate, and coffee. It has a smooth, sturdy mouthfeel with a creaminess that coats the tongue. Notes of coffee, malt, dark chocolate, and slight caramel combine to create a balanced but flavorful oatmeal stout. There’s a slight booziness in the aftertaste, as well as hints of toasted marshmallow and acidity from the coffee influence. Overall, the flavors are unique enough to keep your taste buds intrigued, and balanced enough that you’ll want to share it with friends.

While I could happily go on about the exceptional taste of this imperial stout and the impressive resume of the Reuben’s Brews team, the cashier at my local bottle shop summed up this article succinctly. “Yeah,” he sighed contentedly as I was checking out with my 22-ouncer of the stout, “you can’t go wrong with Reuben’s Brews.”