Review – Oskar Blues Ten Fidy
From Oskar Blues – Ten FIDY is about 10% ABV and is made with enormous amounts of two-row malts, chocolate malts, roasted barley, flaked oats and hops. Its huge-but-comforting flavors hide a whopping 98 IBUs that are deftly tucked underneath the beer’s mountains of malty goodness.
Oskar Blues Brewing Co. – Ten Fidy Imperial Stout – 12 oz. can poured into my New Belgium glass. 9.5% abv.- Purchased at Beverages and More in Pasadena, CA. If you look underneath the can, there is a “Enjoy Batch #4” “Canned on 12-22-08” and “Dark is the Absense of Lite.”
Appearance: Pours jet brown with a foamy head that subsides to a think layer of tan froth. No lie, when you are pouring it into a glass, it really looks like you are pouring motor oil into your glass. The first time I had a can of Ten Fidy, it didn’t even pour head.
Aroma: Roasted malts and caramel. Also whiffs of chocolate and dark fruit.
Taste: Dark chocolate, dark fruits, roasted and burnt malts and a bit of hop spiciness.
Mouthfeel: When you watch it pour, you can almost anticipate how thick this can be. Surprisingly it is still thinner than say Abyss, and Darklord. It feels mostly thick but not goopy.
Overall: This beer rocks. It have a nice balance of malts, hops, bitterness and sweetness for the style. You might walk up to a four pack of canned beer and say “no thanks, four beers for $9 – 11.oo.” These four beers (if you can) will make for a tasty and fufilling evening of beer drinking.
April 14, 2009 @ 3:19 am
That brew sounds really good, and I wish my local BevMo had it. I will look for it.
My favorite imperial stout so far is Old Rasputin by North Coast.
Doesn’t the can present a problem for long term storage? I’ve seen other carbonated beverages (energy drinks) eat through the can and start leaking all over the place after sitting for a while. Maybe a craft brewed beer does not have the acidity that eats away at the metal the way other beverages do, I just don’t know the chemical details.
April 13, 2009 @ 6:15 pm
Oh yeah, this is a brew worth reviewing. (every 3-4 days in my book) This is not for the faint of heart or week of alcohol resistance. However, you will not be overwhelmed by any alcohol taste when enjoying this balanced Imperial Stout. Ticket holders to HotoberFest get free tastes of all the Oskar Blues labels available in Georgia, October 3rd.
April 13, 2009 @ 12:25 pm
This beer also ages very well in the can. I just broke open a can that I had aged for a year and man what a difference. It’s even better than I remembered a year ago. Definitely worth hiding one in your basement for a year. May hide some more for several more years. Best news is, in a can it’ll never get light struck and should hold up very nicely with age.
April 11, 2009 @ 11:30 am
I love this beer! It has become my go-to beer when I just want to enjoy a few session beers. It is definitely on the top of my list of favorite imperial stouts!