duff (5474), Surrey, Greater London, England Jan 29, 2008 Bottle (with many props to HogTownHarry). Way too sweet and alcoholic for me. Has an overly sticky jammy, marmitey flavour, soy saucey. I actually thought there was less coffee than i was expecting from a coffee stout, especially one this strong. The stickyness kills everything else. Not very fun to drink. MesandSim (5790), London, Greater London, England Jan 28, 2008 A Sim rate (bottle at ChrisO’s): Espresso aroma with serious brazil nuts (thanks Ian, for pinning that one down). Marzipan. So sweet. Soo good. Glorious opaque black colour. Tar-like coffee and caramel flavour. Just the way I like it! It’s Bailey’s with Hershey’s syrup. Damn. Nuts, marzipan again. So f**king good! So tarrily thick, it’s like biting into marzipan. lb4lb (2011), Austin, Texas, USA Jan 24, 2008 Bottle courtesy of Miketd. Thanks!
Pours a deep, dark black with a lasting big brown head on a vigorous pour into a snifter. Smell is musty, dark roasted malt, some burnt coffe, but lightly so, and a bit of alcohol as it warms. Mouthfeel is thick and gooey with a slightly prickly carbonation as well. Taste is rich, roasty chocolate, some light coffee that is somewhat subdued, I thought, but nice. Pretty good bittersweet balanced flavor, and for 12%, the alcohol is hidden very well. My favorite Southern Tier beer. hellbilly (1502), scottsdale über alles, Arizona, USA Jan 21, 2008 winter ’07 bomber by way of shadey... a viscous black pour leaves a creamy brown head and a fuzzy coating in the glass until the last sip. the aroma near room temperature is very baltic like... vinous, oat, vanilla, licorice, fruity/prune, chocolate, coffee and wood. aroma carries over to the flavor... monstrously robust! it’s a bit sweet but not overly. it finishes with a light ashiness/astringent and mild alcohol burn. the aftertaste is slightly sweet with more chocolate and coffee. super creamy body with an incredibly velvety texture. the coffee isn’t as pronounced as i thought it was going to be. but, even without it this beer is brilliant. thewolf (5635), Kolding, Denmark Jan 19, 2008 Bottle. [thank you Yespr]
Wow... wow... WOW. Why is this not in the top 50? Pours pitch-black with slight red edges and a great big creamy head. Perhaps I need a spoon for this head? Aroma is brilliant, vinious, cocoa and lots of coffee. Thankfully this is a great coffee, lending a distinct mildness to the brew, not the usual coffee tartness. Mouthfeel is stunningly creamy, much like a much softer oatmeal stout. Flavour is no let-down. Much like a Kaggen (as Yespr said), though not quite as complex. Lots of cocoa, I am surprised that this hasn’t been oak aged, actually. Brilliant balance and super softness. If I have to critique the almost perfect, then it might be the slightly up-turned ABV, lending the beer a slight alcohol burn in the finish. But this is really a minor niggle - truly stunning! faroeviking (6024), Republica Vikingo de las, Faroe Islands Jan 19, 2008 Bottle. Very roasty sweet chocolate alco coffee aroma. Great soft creamy mouthfeel! Thick sticky dark chocolate well roasted maltiness in the flavour with some alcohol, dark fruits and plenty of coffee. Me want more of this! Thanks big time espr. KimJohansen (6676), Copenhagen V, Denmark Jan 17, 2008 [Courtesy of yespr, session @ yespr] Black with nice brown head. Aroma is sweet with roasted malt, chocolate, vanilla and coffee. Sweet roated malt in the aroma that also holds chocolate, vanilla and coffee. Well balanced and round. Nice alcohol burn in the end. Lovely! Thanks again yespr. tgncc (796), Bellmore, New York, USA Jan 17, 2008 The aroma is killer, beautiful roasty coffee scent. The appearance is the jet black of a stout, with the tinge of brown. It has a brown/tan head that very quickly dissipates. The flavor is beautiful as well. It is naturally of roasted coffee, with the sweetness of chocolate and caramel. Nice sweetness on the palate, with a nice thick oily mouthfeel. Definitely a winner.
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