Birrificio del Ducato Verdi (Black Jack)

Brewed by Birrificio del Ducato
Style: Imperial Stout
Roncole Verdi di Busseto (PR), Italy

Serve in Snifter

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Bottle at ACBF 2011. Pitch black - brown head. High smokey, roasted, sweetness, light coffee, sharpness, peated, light whiskey, light peppery. Lovely high smokey aroma and taste.

Black. Spicy. Hot. Chipolte. Clean. Difficult (in a good way). Black green pepper bite. Unusual. Worth trying.

Bottle, bought @ YNWA, Kolding.
Pitch black with a firm, staying, creamy, beige head. Aroma is heavy peity but has a delicate sweetness to it, so it does completely overpower me. Light liqourice and roasted malts. Softly vinious. Soft carbonation, fine creamy mouthfeel. Flavour is elegant sweet, roasted, lovely peity, liqourice, light grainy. Quite elegant viniousness with a fine warming feel.

330ml bottle listed as 10%ABV pours black in color with a 2 finger light tan head that leaves some nice lacing on the glass. Aroma is dark fruits and aromatic hops. Taste is malty sweet with some sour fruits and and mild hop bitterness. This is quite a tasty brew, but does not fit in with the style as it is too fruity and slightly sour, more like a saison than an imperial stout.

Bottle at Todomundo. Pours like engine oil, pitch black with a tan head. Smells strongly of peat, somewhat overwhelming, and chocolate, malt. Tastes a medium sweetness, a mild bitter, and spicyness with only a nice hint of the peat, but very smoothed from the aging. Full bodied. Velvety texture. Finishes well.

A: roasted malts, coffee, hops. A: dark brown T: coffee & chocolate. P: lb to mb O: 15/20

Bottle, shared with my wife. Molasses colour, medium brown head. Aroma is chocolate, ash, and musty barrel. Oh oh. Infected? Bitter roast, chocolate, and sour cherry/berry fruit tangle with musty barrel flavour elements. Yoghurty lactic acidity in the finish. Mouthfeel is thin for the ABV. I’m pretty sure this is off-- if it isn’t, then I don’t like their result.

(bottle) pours a pitch black colour with a frothy brown head. aroma has heaps of char and peat smoke, toasted malts and espresso, with light notes of cherries and earth. flavour is overwhelmingly peaty and roasty, with light notes of dark chocolate and honey and a medium sweetness which balances out the roasted-bitter finish wonderfully. thick body with soft carbonation. the peat smoke is amazingly integrated here.

I had very high hopes for this as I am a big fan of the original. However, it seems as it is going downhill fast. The nose has hints of bourbon and some of the typical chocolates/coffee aromas, but hints of souring are coming out as well. The taste as well has high indications that this beer is headed towards infection. Somehow I can still taste it’s not barrel aged version in there which is it’s saving grace.

meglio questa della verdi classica. mi è parsa più bilanciata, più in palla, anche più corpo.

My bottle is marked at bottle # 750. Black Jack Pours out a dark brown with a thin, tan head. The head dies instantly to form a thin beige cap leaving some nice spotty lacing. Wafts of whiskey and roasted malts from afar. The nose is well roasted with sweet cocoa, vanilla and a light burnt coffee note. A hint of dark fruits and a light alcohol presence are noticed. Overall, a nice nose despite missing some of the overall robustness of an Imperial Stout. My first sip is very much underwhelming with a big roast and a overall sweetness. A lingering aftertaste of wood, smoke and the most delicious scotch I can imagine. After letting this beer warm up a bit, I got a beautiful middle with notes of chocolate, espresso, burnt wood, vanilla, hot peppers and a subtle sour fruity note. A dry moderately bitter finish with a sublime scotch aftertaste. The palate lets me down overall with a watery, thin mouthfeel and an unusual oily texture. Black Jack is a great, complex Imperial Stout, despite missing the overall robust richness and viscous mouthfeel.