Eel River Raven's Eye Imperial Stout.

Yet another Eel River offering. It's been a while since I've had an imperial stout, it seems, so it sounded good when I saw it. Plus, it was kind of a cool name and label, a little different from the typical something-something-black-or-dragon-whatnot. Besides, I really like those big black birds. They're always yelling at people or standing around talking to each other. Pretty funny.

A heavy black, noticeably viscous pour, but with not much head. Weaseling an aroma out of this is kind of difficult but it's mostly caramel. I'm not going to lie, I didn't type anything about the first half of this bomber because I was watching Lego videos on YouTube. Upon pouring the other half though, I get a visual confirmation of the mouthfeel. This is a pretty fizzy beer for being an imperial stout. The head on this actually fizzed out like a soda, which is pretty bizarre. The second glass is also a little warmer, and I find the viscosity somewhat less pleasing in this case. It's a decent tasting imperial stout. Rich and malty, bittering slightly on the back on the finish. I really have to say the amount of carbonation in this slightly distracting. I feel like I'm drinking a slightly warm soda, the kind that's a little too each to foam up when it hits your mouth. Because of the association, I get a little cola flavor. And some licorice. Maybe a little brownie.

On one hand, I'm happy to be drinking an unadulterated imperial stout. On the other hand, this is slightly generic and the carb is off to the point of being distracting. It is a punchy 9.5%ABV though. So it's not a bad take. But there are certainly others that I'd opt for first. If I could get a deal on these, yeah, I'd pick up a case or two. But if I had a choice, Rasputin is solid.

• Appearance: Thick-looking black pour, not head. Second pour had a soda-like head that fizzed out.
• Smell: Hard to get an impression without a head to capture it. I get mostly caramel.
• Taste: A fairly standard, if a bit mild, dark, slightly sweet malt with some finishing bitter. A bit too nondescript. On the second glass, I found some licorice and something akin to brownies.
• Mouthfeel: Overcarbed. It's pretty distracting. Otherwise, viscous, slightly sticky.
• Drinkability and Overall: 9.5%ABV so if you can get a deal, well, then you got a deal. But otherwise, there are other imperial stouts more worth your time.