Left Hand Fade To Black Vol. 1

Formerly brewed at Left Hand Brewing Co.
Style: Foreign Stout
Longmont, Colorado USA

Serve in English pint, Snifter, Tulip

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

A: The pour is just about black with a short lived mocha head that starts off at about one finger in height. S: Lots of roasted malts on the nose with a nice coffee aroma to it as well. Seemingly not as dry and acidic as a lot of export stouts can be. A slight char is present along with some bitter dark chocolate. T: The roast is the dominant flavor and there’s some slightly acidic coffee tones to go with it. Not as much in terms of chocolate but there is a good toffee character. A solid bitterness that lasts to the finish. M: The body is medium with a moderate level of carbonation. D: Not always my favorite style, but this was a pretty good example of it. Definitely higher in alcohol than I was initially anticipating, but it does not really show itself.

On tap. Pours an opaque dark brown with a thin almost non-existant tan head. Aroma is coffee and chocolate malt. Taste is robust but not offensively so. Lots of different slavors, smoke, toffee, coffee, and bitter chocolate. Even with many flavors occuring simultaneously, the don’t compete but compliment nicely. A damn fine stout.

They describe Fade to Black as a smoked Baltic porter. Pours black with a thin, dark tan head. The smoke is definitely there, along with some meat notes. This really does taste a bit like bacon, but with more smoke. The mouthfeel is somewhere between heavy medium and light heavy. It certainly has some body, but it’s not really heavy. There’s a bit of malt sweetness in the finish as this is more malty than hoppy. I think it’s delicious

This ale pours jet black with brownish red head. Aromas of smoked wood burnt sugar hop resin and toasted biscuit malt. Flavor is bitter and woodsy slightly smoked and some flavors of dark raisin or date. Body is almost full but not creamy due to alcohol warmth.

Hearty burnt malt backbone that features lots of sugary treat notes of caramel, marshmallow, light butterscotch, milky milk chocolate and cocoa. Light full body coffee notes that are roasted to perfection. Great drink.

12oz bottle shared with the tallahassee crew, sweet dark aroma, first sip is malty, tobacco, a little bitterness on the end, wow, this is quite good. It was my last bottle of the 6 pack, way too bad.

In short: A stout with plenty of fudge, coffee and herbal hops. Very good despite being too boozy.
How: Bottle 12oz. Consumed almost 1 year after the beer release
The look: Brown black body topped by a medium tan head with good retention
In long: Nose is very roated with burnt cake, burnt wood and molasses. Taste starts with black coffee, lots of fudge, chewing tobacco, whole-wheat bread and cocoa. Then comes a surprising hefty dose of herbal hops and a little alcohol bite. Alcohol is a bit too apparent for a 8.5% stout. Nice Belgian-like lively mouthfeel. The hopping character of the beer reminds me of a local beer Naufrageur Raccoon that I like because of that very reason. Finish is aggressively dry, roasted and bitter, like eating dry bitter herbs with a shot of alcohol. In my honest opinion this is a good beer with a few flaws. Today is Christmas day and this year for Christmas I’ve decided to give everyone my opinion.

Big ashy nose, leather, engine grease and topsoil. Smells like my Uncle Jim as it warmed, the ash subdued into a arid smokiness that begins to dominate. Jet black with a small pale tan head. Very impressive on the palate, smooth tight body, gritty ground coffee middle and some chocolate peeks out here and there. Little chalky mineral finish balances out the aggressive roast in the finish. Kudos.

Unabashidly black, there is no need for light in my life at the moment because I am happily enamored with this dark beauty before me. Lace abounds while a soft espresso crema head lingers as a solid blanket of fluff. Her nose? Where’s the café because I smell fresh coffee brewing while my double shot of espresso slowly oozes its way into my carafe. Coffee may be my morning life-blood, but I could easily replace her with a solid coffee stout such as Fade To Black. Underneath her crunchy coffee and espresso nose are layers of chocolate graham crackers. Roasted espresso beans are coated in melted black chocolate for my snacking pleasure and that be all her nose wrote. Straight up coffee/espresso/black chocolate goodness and I am mighty fine with that. My first sup is dry, roasty, and of medium weight. Not too heavy, she glides across my palate just like a fine cup of joe should. Add some melted dark chocolates to the mix along with a side platter of chocolate graham crackers for dipping and I don’t mind if I do. Easy drinking, she nonetheless is proud of her flavor profile which I am enjoying in spades. She only lightly dries my palate and for just a moment, dark pitted fruits flitter across my field of tasting. A few more sups of quaff and repeat and our relationship comes to her inevitable end.

Drinking a good beer can’t be beat. The more I taste the more I am an affirmed flavorholic. Life is about living with as much flavor as possible. Thankfully Left Hand Brewing is there to offer me another pedestal of flavor upon which to merrily stand with their Fade To Black.

10/23/10. 12oz bottle. Nice black pour with a small brown head. Light chocolate aroma with a nice burnt coffee and chocolate flavor that is very nice. Yum!