New Belgium 1554 Enlightened Black Ale

Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: Traditional Ale
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Pours a dark reddish brown with one inch of tan head. Aroma of roasted malts and caramel. I also smell some cocoa, nuts and faint coffee. Taste is nutty and malty with toffee caramel flavors as well. This has a creamy flavor like a milk stout. There is also an earthy aftertaste and some chocolate and coffee notes as well. Consistency is medium thickness and smooth with little carbonation. This is a tasty dark beer with out being overwhelming. I really enjoyed this beer. Quite different.

On tap, dark brown almost black in color with smells of chocolate and toffee. Not very heavy for a beer of its color, but thats a good thing. Very drinkable dark beer that cures the sweet tooth in your mouth. Flavors of chocolate, and toffee.

Pours from bomber a very dark ruby color with a small light tan head that diminishes quickly. The aroma is very malty and sweet. Good lacing on the glass. Flavour was of dark bread with hints of lime. Dry finish with taste of cocoa powder and some slight acidity. This has lots of Schwarzbier characteristics. An ok ale, somewhat characterless.

this one i really enjoyed. it satisfied my sweet tooth without getting gross. smells like musty chocolate bread and tastes like toffee. the high carbonation balanced the sweetness very nicely.

From a 22oz bottle this brew poured a light black color with a decent brown head and lots of lacing. Nice nutty, malty, chocolately aroma. On first taste, this black ale actually reminded me of a Carolina Nut Brown Ale - that is not a bad thing as that is one of my favorites. This beer had a nice smioky flavor to it as well but was a little thinner in the mouthfeel that I was expecting. Over all a very solid beer that I would certainly buy and drink again.

Bomber from Whole Foods, Raleigh. Nice to have NB’s core beers here. Not as dark a pour as I’d anticipated, more like an amber in a grumpy mood. Crisp carbonation and moderate head. Fruity malts in the nose, with a hint of chocolate and very, very faint dusky smoke in the flavors. Kind of shifts between ripe and fruity and dark and malty, and I think I’d prefer it if the beer trended more heavily in the latter direction. But it’s still a solid and sessionable brew.

22 oz. One of the more interesting pours I’ve seen in a while. Near black brown pour, with the head near straight white. The contrast unusual and interesting looking. Little white bubbly lacing. Malty aroma, roast nut. Tastes simple of roast malt and cocoa. Just the tiniest start of sourness, but it is gone so quickly it might just be me. Could be some slight dark fruits. A little tobacco in the finish is a little odd, but not off-putting. Found this extreamly drinkable after a nice bike ride. Reminded me of a Schwarzbier. Of the 2 I’ve had from New Belgium, this one Fat Tire, I definetely prefer this. Would seek it out for regular consumption.

My favorite brew from New Belgium Co. It has a rich dark color with a lite tan head. Good after diner beer.