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New Belgium 1554 Enlightened Black Ale

New Belgium 1554 Enlightened Black Ale - Traditional Ale

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 Percentile 
88
overall
Brewed by New Belgium Brewing Company
Style: Traditional Ale

Fort Collins, Colorado USA

bottled
common

on tap
common

Broad Distribution
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 Ratings  Average  Score  ABV  Style Pctl  Serve in 
10903.51/5.03.51/5.05.6%91.1Dimpled mug, English pint, Stein, Yard
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Commercial Description:
Born of a flood and centuries-old Belgian text, 1554 Enlightened Black Ale uses a light lager yeast strain and dark chocolaty malts to redefine what dark beer can be. In 1997, a Fort Collins flood destroyed the original recipe our researcher, Phil Benstein, found in the library. So Phil and brewmaster, Peter Bouckaert, traveled to Belgium to retrieve this unique style lost to the ages. Their first challenge was deciphering antiquated script and outdated units of measurement, but trial and error (and many months of in-house sampling) culminated in 1554, a highly quaffable dark beer with a moderate body and mouthfeel.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 brenn79 (140), Idaho, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/104/516/20
Oct 9, 2009  
12 oz. bottle- Aroma is decent enough, but the flavor is where this beer excells. Flavor of chocolate and coffee, deeply multi layered in flavors, the best New Belgium beer i’ve ever had.


phildorsey (42), Fort Lewis, Washington, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/105/55/105/513/20
Oct 8, 2009  
1 pint 6 oz. Bottle. Pours Black. head is minimum and light-brown. Aroma is chocolaty and roasty. Flavor is fizzy to the palate, body is medium. Flavor misses the mark slightly. overall taste is better than average...finish long and full of body. Nice.


 poisoneddwarf (153), Rathdrum, Idaho, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/104/516/20
Oct 4, 2009  
12 oz botttle. Smells of chocolate, coffee, dark malt. Black in appearance (no surprise), small head, moderate lacing. Tastes of black coffee. Creamy mouthfeel. One of New Belgium’s best.


patagonia (2), Cleveland, Ohio, USA
does not count click to see why this rating of New Belgium 1554 Enlightened Black Ale does not count
4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/105/58/104/516/20
Oct 2, 2009  
I like this the best of the New Belgium Brewing selections. Hints of chocolate/coffee. Dark roasted malts. Actually a bit lighter than you would expect, so you can throw a few down in a sitting. I’m facinated by the 1554 story.


 vikingguy (139), Chaska, Minnesota, USA
3.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/104/56/103/513/20
Oct 1, 2009  
Pours black w/ dull ruby hue; off-white creamy head. Aroma of sweet malt, burnt sugar and hints of coffee & dark fruit. Taste is coffee w/ cream, sweet malt w/ notes of chocolate & nuts. Some bitterness on the back end. Mouthfeel is thinner than expected and not as sweet as the aroma lets on. This is good, kind of a cross between a nut brown ale and a porter.


 TampaBrew (749), Tampa, Florida, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/57/104/516/20
Sep 29, 2009  
Pours a flat coke color. Nose is slight roast, some cocoa and coffee. Flavor is a clean toasted malt, mild chocolate and sweet caramel. Above average mouthfeel. Good drinking beer.


 NomDeBeer (399), Maryland, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/58/104/517/20
Sep 28, 2009  
Stout-like, flavor and mouth feel. Taste and aroma both dominated by chalk, chocolate, and caramel. Long enjoyable finish. Great beer.


 kmweaver (2398), Sebastopol, California, USA
3.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/103/513/20
Sep 25, 2009  
12oz bottle. Pours a dark, cola-brown color; light tan head with fine-bubbled lacing. Loads of nougat and wet malts in the aroma; richness without being overtly sweet; hints of chocolate. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: lively carbonation upfront, and a solidly drinkable presentation; lots of dark malts, nougat, and touches of cocoa at the core of things; light on the perimeter; in all honestly, the carbonation is a touch pushy here, but there’s a citrus bitterness balancing this out that’s quite nice. Solid beer. Lengthy finish of wet malts, chocolate, and a slight, though lasting mineral bitterness. Tasty finish.



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