’t Hofbrouwerijke Hofblues

Pitch black body with a very thin light-brown head - insanely dark. Aroma of molasses, deep dark roasted malt, oak, cereal and very STRONG vanilla pods. Full-bodied; Strong meaty flavour with molasses, raisins and burnt coffee noticeable. Aftertaste very mild, with malt and burnt sugars in behind. Overall, not very good - perhaps too much dark burnt sugars and not enough other flavours or character to be good. I’m happy to have tried this, just wished it was a bit better. I sampled this 33 cL bottle purchased from the Utobeer Market Stall in Borough (London), England on 29-November-2008, sampled on 01-March-2009 at home in Washington, although I did see this beer also (and two other varieties) at Beer Mania in Bruxelles a few weeks earlier.

Bottle from Cracked Kettle. Black, coarse cappucino head. Dry, burned malty nose with faint solvent, wood, little herbs and coffee beans. Similar to Titanic stout, though a bit messy. Simple burned flavor, grainy malts, woodiness, dry ashy finish. Hardly any coffee/cocoa notes. Hollow, even a tad watery palate. A drinkable, but ashy and thin stout.

Bottle off Octo’s shelf. Been eyeing this one enviously for a while. Black as yer hat pour spiralling inkily into the snifter. Dense tan head going nowhere. Mouth-watering Lindt Excellence 85% aroma drenched with deep deep raisiny cocoa, fat humming blackcurrant, red apple, musty alpha hoppage, espresso,puff of English sulphur, Marmite, brine,charcoal. Come on, that’s a 9. No disappointments flavour-wise; massive charred high cocoa and full-on alpha bitterness, coffee,yeast extract, splashes of US impy stout intensity. Balanced and dry I’d say, and with the possible exceptions of Black Albert/Ellezelloise Hercule, the best Belgian Stout I’ve had. Above all, COCOA and HOPS. Love it.

Bottle. Pours black with a very big gushing frothy light brown head. Aroma of roasted malts, chocolate, soft caramel and a touch of coffee. flavor is roasted malts, chocolate, coffee and some notes of smoke and toffee with a medium body and has a roasted bitter finish.

750 ml swing top poured a clear dark brown nearly black in the glass with a small lasting tan head. Aromas of milk chocolate, carmel, vanilla, light roastiness and light coffee. Palate was medium bodied and smooth. Flavors of coffee, dark chocolate, roastriness and light vanilla with a smooth lightlydry lingering bitter roasty finish.

Bottle. Poured a dull black color. Nice malt nose, with hints of chocolate and coffee. Nicely carbonated, and very drinkable. Not particularly bitter, but a very appealing flavor.

Bottle from Quaffs that I’ve had sitting around for about a year. Pours deep brown, almost black with a beige head that’s tan around the edges. Roasty malt, dark chocolate, coffee, chicory and caramel in the nose. Flavor is much the same with nice roast notes, lots of powdery cocoa and a dry finish. I’d put off drinking this expecting disappointment but it was a pleasant surprise, I almost gave it 8’s for aroma and flavor. Belgian stouts seem to be coming along nicely.

A stout, no more no less. A decent one, balanced not sweet nor too bitter. The one-dimension does not make it too drinkable. Pours dark with tons of head requiring patience.Some roast aroma.ABove average mouthfeel.