Mikkeller 黑 / Black

Mikkeller
Brewed at De Proefbrouwerij
Style: Imperial Stout
Copenhagen V, Denmark

courtesy of Per Forsgren - pours a pitch black colour with a little brown foam; aroma of almonds, black chocolate and black cherries, the all thing being brutalized by aggressive notes of alcohol; strong initial dextrose-like sweetness, low carbonation and very cream mouthfeel, oily and with an unbelievable bitterness; aftertaste of burned plastic with whisky notes and burning alcohol - this stuff has an incredible alcohol presence and looks like 40% to me; aggressive and totally offside, this is really too much for my senses

Bottle from PC Market of Choice in Eugene, OR. Pours black with a decent dark tan head. Aromas of coffee, tobacco, dark roasted malt, and mayhap chocolate. Full bodied with thick, creamy carbonation. Flavor is sweet dark malt, milk chocolate, coffee, and leather. There’s heat, but it acts more as spice than interference. Finish develops a touch of cola. Somewhat sticky. FD&GtoH.

Bottle shared with bhensonb. This totally opaque dark brown ale poured with a thin tan head and an overwhelming chocolate malt aroma. The flavor is heavy duty chocolate and coffee with a strong alcohol finish. Make this your last beer of the night. Thanks Bill.

Deep yet penetrable brown. Sticky ring of head forms as the grayish bubbles quickly disperse. Aroma reveals notes of figs, molasses, tobacco, caramelized custard, rum-steeped raisins and a hint of vanilla, cola and scorched cocoa. Soft, snug carbonation. Deceptively full in body. Captivatingly immense and viscous from the start, though a spirited surge of alcohol briefly offsets the gooey residuals by zinging the palate. Deep, unrelenting crisp char stings the tongue and amplifies the vinous qualities. Added layers of texture come by way of bread and caramel which gently cushion the prickly alcohol and stark burnt-cookie bite. Clean attenuation coupled with a salty bitterness, reminiscent of salmiakki, keeps the high concentration of molasses-drizzled toffee sweetness from overtiring the palate. Assorted berry and braised beef snippets impart deep-rooted pockets of juiciness and elegance to other otherwise full-on assault of alcohol and molasses. Deceptively enormous roast continuously clasps the tongue with its snappy bitterness, but takes a backseat to the clingy residuals. Finishes sweetly portlike and borderline medicinal as the insistent sweetness links up with the astringent ashy char. Whisper of espresso and bitter chocolate lingers. Really a mixed bag for me. While it does possess some elegance and refinement - particularly in the carefully placed fruity esters and fairly well-layered maltiness - the brutish char and omnipresent sweetness need to show more restraint. On top of that, this bottle is not even a year old yet is already showing signs of oxidation (cardboard, namely), and, consequently, is fairly dull and more astringent than it was a few months ago.

Very Very different! Bottle thanks to Bman1113VR’s girlfriend. Drank with both of them. Pours a thick motor oil like body with a brown creamy head. Nose is like smoked bacon (maybe wood smoke), booze, chocolate, rum cake, more wood, and brown sugar. Taste is very sweet and I would equate it to a coffee port. Mouthfeel is amazing, like silky water if that makes sense, (due to the sake yeast) it there is even a punch of cedar in the finish. Warming and pretty long finish. I have not had something this unique in a very long time.

Bottle thanks to my girlfriend. Drank with I love dark beer. Pours with a big viscous black body. with a thick largish light brown heead. Aroma has lots of wood, lots of alcohol, lots of chocolate, lots of nail varnish and some cinnamon, apple brandy and rum soaked figs, molasses and brown sugar. Alcohol seems to add some complexity to the aroma. Taste is sweet upfront like a dessert wine (slightly fruity), then booze, chocolatee and some harsh wood. Really sweet. So creamy. Long finish that is all wood. Should mellow out over time to take on more of the dessert wine like characteristics. Very creative brew that I feel is quite underated.

Coffee, roasted notes, and alcohol come through loud and clear is this violently alcoholic stout. The alcohol unfortunately is a little too powerful in the appearance and somehow disturbes the overall experience. The flavour suites me well. This is in deed a long drink.

Pricey bottle, via trade, so I kinda sorta paid for it. Poured in my Reidel Snifter, black with a light brown 1 finger head that chilled out and turned into some islands. Nose is malty with a a lighter fluid coffee, nail polish remover heat. Taste is sweet, very hot very very hot with lots of rich deep malts. This is a weird super hot beer, that has joined the hype train for Mikkeller, once again for me Mikkeller is hit or miss. Sometimes amazing, sometimes okay, sometimes strange and sometimes not so exciting, this is in some of those camps.