McNeill's Dark Angel

A while back Jo and I spent Christmas in Vermont and I picked up a couple bottles at a local shop. One of those was McNeill's Dark Angel, an Imperial Stout. McNeill's is a small brewery with the brewpub located in Brattleboro, VT. I say brewpub instead of brewery because I think the major brewing and bottling is done elsewhere.

Roasty, slightly hoppy nose. First sip was quite impressive. Roast, hint of vanilla, hint of chocolate, and ended with a mild hop bitterness that had faded quite a bit. Roasty chocolate aftertaste. Decently thick body as well. I read on the bottle that it is dry hopped which explains the strong hop characteristics. On the whole, the hops accentuate all the imperial stout flavors without overpowering them which is exactly what I like in a more hoppy imperial stout. It's hard to say if the beer is super hoppy fresh but with at least six months on it, it's pretty impressive and I really enjoyed it.