Cigar City Brewing Marshal Zhukov’s Imperial Stout (365 Day 67)

By scot in 365 Days of American Craft Beer on Sunday, February 6th, 2011

Cigar City Marshal Zhukov's Imperial Stout

American craft beer and a cold do not go too well together. Day two of my cold leaves me tired, head full of who knows what, a headache, and the inability to stay awake for more than a few hours at a time. I am exhausted. I knew I needed something to keep up, so I choose a stout that would have some big presence, hopefully able to knock through the cold.

Marshal Zhukov’s Imperial Stout by Cigar City was just the beer that would fit the profile. If you have read this run of blogs at all, you know that Cigar City has been a brewery that I am not really fond of, having found more beers I dislike than like.

Marshal Zhukov pours and looks superbly in my snifter. The aroma follows, having all the quality of a solid big stout. The taste has a bit of chocolate bitterness and burnt flavors that come on a little too strong, making it hard to drink. I can only imagine if I had more of my senses about me how much that combination might hinder my ability to like the beer even more. No matter, I would have it again, and I could really see myself trying it on tap. Enjoy!

Aroma: 10, Taste: 8, Look: 10, Drinkability: 8, Overall: 8.8

Useless Fact: The eight game pieces in Monopoly are: dog, top hat, wheel barrow, race car, boot, iron, battleship, thimble, and formerly used to also include the cannon, horse and rider and bag of money.