Dark Horse Reserve Special Black Bier

Opaque black, with an extremely fine medium mocha head that sticks around and leaves nice lacing. Nose is a touch of roast malt over brown bread, with an excellent hint of candied fruit. Excellent broad spectrum of malt flavors. Manages to be both subtle and complex. Bit of leafy hop as it warms. Great stuff! Complexity carries through to the palate, where the dark, bready malt leads the way, but is well-supported by yeasty, chocolately, and coffee notes. Medium-full in the mouth, but there is excellent acidity to keep it balanced. Very long. This batch is well-carbonated, and the beer is incredibly drinkable for its strength. A fine beer for a session or a meal.

This beer pours a shiny black color with a thin light beige head that turns wispy quickly. Very little lacing apparent. Roasted malt and caramel aroma. Medium-bodied and smooth with a pleasant roasted character. Coffee, malt and hops flavors make this one enjoyable. The finish is hoppy and leaves a charred wood aftertaste. One of the better Porters I have tasted in awhile.

Pours a very deep dark brown - you have to look at it twice to realized it isn’t black. The head is around a half inch - but the thick and creamy brown foam settles in a minute or so down to a thin cap. Good lacing, however. Chocolate, coffee, and plum in the aroma - nice and full. Drier flavor than the aroma suggests - bitter roasted malt, burnt coffee, bittersweet chocolate, and a little bit of prune. A bit of an ashy aftertaste, but not too much. Hops for balance (not a lot are needed with the bitter malt flavors). Medium full body, lightly carbonated, not exactly smooth, but not overly rough either.

Love the look of the pour dark and tan. Head is not long lived but the coffee, chocolate and earthy malts stand up. Very good flavor and truly one of the best darks available.

Roasted malt with a faint hint of fruit. Black with a huge frothy black head. Medium palate. Lots of roasted malts and some burnt coffee. This brew leaves a bitter taste in the sides of your cheeks.

pour is black with a nice dense brown head...rich roasty nose with lots of coffee and some cocoa...taste is sweet at first with a strong roasty bitterness coming in very quickly...seems a little thin too...

This beer pours an inky black, with very little tan head which does not stick around long. Aroma is strong coffee and chocolate malt notes. Flavor is coffee flavor and "burned pizza crust" taste, which is very good and well-matched to the porter style (in my opinion). Mouthfeel is thin - this beer is smooth (with the taste delivering a certain bitter bite - that’s a good thing) but needs more carbonation; it feels flat to me.

12oz bottle, pours pitch black with tan head. nose is very chocolaty, undertones of coffee, smoke, and dark fruits. flavor is extremely roasty, charred milk chocolate, dark fruits, and pretty bitter. mouthfeel is smooth but not as thick as a stout. this beer is complex but the flavors aren’t blended perfectly. to me this is really somewhere between a stout and an imperial stout not a porter, but it’s a great beer nonetheless. because it’s so good i can’t knock it for not being closer to style. when i want to drink a stout or imperial stout i’ll grab this and be happy. a great beer.