Hmmmm, I’m surprised this is retired as I just had it on tap at the Red Caboose diner in Whitefish. Maybe it was the Fred’s but with an old tap handle? Anyway, I’m going to rate it as is-- very dark stouty brown, bitter roast aroma, some chocolate. Generously malty palate, flavourful roastiness, slightly sweet. IHaving recently tried the Fred’s, I can honestly say this was more flavourful, but perhaps it has more to do with this being on tap (I tried Fred’s from the bottle).

Pours a deep brown color. Aromas of light chocolate, a hint of coffee, and a touch of hops. Flavor is bold on this one, coffee bitterness with a mellow chocolate, smoooth finish.

Another quality, quaffable, Cheap beer from Black Star (Bottles 2001-3). Dark brown/black, schwarzy looking stuff. Huge head that fades. Like other "black" beers, this falls short of matching its appearance to its body as it is thin, a bit watery, and not at all sweet (except for a lagerish sweetness. As I've said before, this is not my favorite style. Nice roasted malt front and certainly dry on the finish, as advertised.

Bottle. Funny, the brewery is near Kallispell, Montana, not San Francisco--that's why many of you haven't seen it. Dark braown beer, almost completely opaque. The head is aggressive, but subsides quickly with no lace to speak of. Chocolate, roast malts, with mild hop character--especially in th oce--they dry hop it, hence the "double hopped" on the label. The body is somewhat thin. This is a typical large scale microbrew--or a small macrobrew. I heard the brewery was started by a grandson of Henry Weinhard's, but that may be urban myth.

A macro-style schwarzbier. Sweet at first with a definite watered down taste. But for $3.99 a six paxk you really can't complain.