Beer Review: Obsidian Stout

Price: $8.99 for a six pack
Brewery: Deschutes Brewery, Bend, Oregon
Style: Ale, Stout
ABV: 6.4%
Color: Opaque, black
Aroma: Roasted grains,slight hops, slightly burnt,
Body: On the higher side of medium.
Stomach Aspect: Full
Head: dark tan/brown, pours nicely to about 1/4 inch thick with tightly grouped bubbles. Faded within 30 seconds of being poured.
Head Retention: slight retention, the brew does leave a faint trace from the last pull.
Taste: Subtle hints of chocolate grains, strong presence of Roasted Barley, strong, lingering bitterness from Black Patent Grain, mild hops, slight malty finish.
Conclusion: I have been drinking this brew when it first hit the market about 14 years ago. Back then I didn't know what a Stout was, or how it was suppose to taste. Over the years (before I started brewing & reviewing beer) I would drink this brew every chance I got, and it became my favorite beer. The color is pretty and very enticing, the aroma is faint, but pungent (yes pungent), but with as slight citrus aroma from the hops. Taking a drink of this brew and you get a slight touch of chocolate grain flavor, and at mid tongue you get a nice flavor of roasted barley, but then the brew turns to into something odd. The bitter, pungent aspect of the beer hits the back part of your tongue and your almost get the feeling you're sucking on a Sour Patch Kid. Some people like to call this "bite", I beg to differ. If they would cut back the Black Patent (which the grain is used for dark color, not flavor) I think this brew would improve. Be as it may, the bitterness is so strong that it over powers the faint taste of hops just before you swallow. Just when you think your done with the bitterness, and have enjoyed the last of it, it sticks to your tongue. Almost like a coating of bitter, burnt toaster crumbs. The coating is so strong that it stays on the tongue for almost 3 minutes after you have swallowed, not good. I have tasted, reviewed and brewed award winning Stouts. This is not one of them, nor does it come close. It's not a bad beer, but it's not a good beer. Don't get me wrong, if you can handle the bitterness, and the full body aspect of this Stout then by all means drink it. However, if you can't, don't spend your money, there are better Stouts out there.
Public Aspect: None. I mean people shy away from the darker style brews like they do the plague. This beer will not only scare them away with the color, but once they've had a taste that bitterness will be sure to make them run for something less pungent. If you like the flavor profile of a Stout (especially this one) then you should not have any problem keeping this too yourself. I've gone to BBQ's with a six pack of this stuff as my drink for the night, and I've drank all six with out a single offer from someone asking to try it. That's how scary this brew is, but not scary in a good way.