Great Lakes Blackout Stout

On draft at Airport in Cleveland. A very nice stout. Full bodied and tastes of choclate’, coffee and alcohol. Very nice one

Sampled at the Flour City Brewers’ Fest 2008. Great Lakes Blackout Stout is a reddish black ale with a leathery, brown sugar colored head. The aroma is of licorice, dark roast coffee, mint and alcohol. It is full bodied and creamy in the mouth. The finish is dry. The flavor has notes of alcohol, licorice, chocolate and black currant. It kind of reminds me of Old Rasputin. I think this was the highlight of the Brewers’ Fest.

Bottle marked to enjoy by 08.02.07...oops, more than a year off, but whatever. Pours with a largish, lightbrown head covering a black body. Aroma of alcohol, toasted malts, some more alcohol, licorice, and hazelnuts. Taste is sweet with alcohol. Chocolate over coffee, with vanilla in the battle aswell. Cream mouthfeel, light carbonation. Warming, alcohol is not too well hidden.

2008 Flour City Brewfest. Pours dark black with a reddish hue, and a small tan head that fades fast. Excellent aroma, with strong chocolate notes. Great complex taste, an initial burst of dried fruit which gives way to chocolate followed by the warmth of the roasted malts and alcohol. Great stout.

Pours black...really black, with a thick brown head that quickly diminishes to a surface ring. Aroma is amazing - dark roast coffee, baker’s chocolate, and malt. Taste follows, but adds a touch of hops and an extremely boozy finish. Maybe a wee too much alcohol considering how well most of its peers hide their ethanol. Heavy body, but nice velvety mouthfeel. May just have to put one of these away for a bit to see if it calms down with age.

Pitch black with a solid tan head that settles quickly and leaves some thick lacing. Caramel-chocolate aroma with some very faint hints of blueberry. Smooth but heavy mouthfeel. Sweet, malty flavor with some nice coffee notes and a slightly bitter finish.

I have two bottles in the cellar that I plan on opening in a few months.

Finally getting around to rating this. Bottle from my secret santa. Thanks! Says on the bottle: For freshest taste, enjoy by 7/15/07. So Im guessing this is at least a year or two old. Pours black with a thin cream colored head. Nose is strong dark chocolate, coffee, hops. Flavor has a lot of coffee, more chocolate, and heavy molasses which is a bit cloying on the palate. I thought this would be better with age, but it seems to have gone downhill. Almost like a molasses/coffee bomb at this point. Can still taste a bit of the hops in the finish which balances things out a bit.

Poured from a 12-oz bottle. A dark black body on this beer with limited head. Smell of dark chocolate, burnt coffee and roasted malt. Taste was a little more bitter than expected with chocolate, roasted malt and coffee really coming to the forefront. Could also detect some nice hops.