[A Beer a Day] Belgian Style Yeti Imperial Stout | Great Divide Brewing | Denver, CO

Aaaaargh Orkeckle Aorarooorr Mmrrppphhh.

One thing that bugs me about 1) the oppressive lack of lighting in my house, and 2) the total randomness in which my phone takes well-captured photos or remarkably shitty ones in the space of one frame to the next -- is that the first thing I really wanted you to notice about this beer was the absolutely gorgeous packaging that is going on.

True, I am an enormous fan of the Great Divide's Imperial Stout Yeti Series overall, but judging from the starkness that this bottle portrays from the refrigerator bays, this one wins on beauty alone. 

The Belgian Yeti's B R I G H T yellow business suit contrasting with the limo-black bottle is honestly stunning.  Combined with Sasquatch's iconic mid-stride pose whilst spooking the boozed-up Belgian monk -- who is all but offers our olfactorily-challenged giant a sample of his chalice -- really makes me believe that if there is all sorts of shit going on outside the bottle, the innards have got to be a party-and-a-half.  In other words, if Great Divide allocated this much creativity and attention to the beer itself, it might make me just start barking like fish. 

If you are as devoted of a reader of this blog as I am, you will note that I am a major suitor to both stouts and porters.  When brewers do entire series devoted to 'em, then I get a bit crazy in the pants.

Over the past few years, Great Divide has occasionally released a new stout to join the others in their Yeti series, which is remarkable in the fact that these are all seasonal stouts -- like even in the spring and summer months, stouts.  That shit cray.

So far, we have been ordained with the original Yeti Imperial Stout, Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout, Espresso Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout, Chocolate Yeti Imperial Stout, and finally, the Belgian Style Yeti Imperial Stout.  As you may surmise, these are big boy beers, maxing out at 9.5% ABV each -- yet they are wildly different their palatable subtleties, which make the average person want to collect the entire set.  This was the first time I'd even seen the Belgian.

Like a normal Yeti, the Belgian Style Yeti Imperial Stout will choke your fucking face -- in an awesome way.  There are still all of the wonderful notes of a typical imperial stout present -- like chocolate, nuts, coffee, and roasted malts -- but also the extraordinary spicy and fruity characteristics of a Belgian ale imparted by Western European yeast strains.  Its fucking remarkable to have such a complex, nuanced beer with such a dense delivery -- like Big Foot himself fiddling around with Garry Kasparov in a game of Russian ballet-chess.

I am completely smitten with this beer, particularly since the bright months forebode, and this is to be enjoyed, according to the master brewers, from July to September.  IPAs best not be messin' with Sasquatch this summer.

ABV: 9.5% 
Acquired: Austin Bottle Shop
★★★★★★★★★☆