Surly Darkness

Brewed by Surly Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota USA

Serve in Snifter

Big thanks to MrPickles!
Shared with 12many. Of course this thing pours extremely dark and has a thick brown head. Aroma is a mix of chocolate, hops, and some kind of candy. Flavor has loads of chocolate, dark licorice, and a peculiar hoppy fruitiness to it. Palate is damn near perfect with it’s smooth, thick, and soft texture. Definitely different than anything I’ve ever tasted and I can’t wait to experience it again.

2009 Bottle - Big thanks to Toby for cracking this! - Pours out thick and oily almost black with a medium dk brown head...aroma is bold, roast, dk fruit, some resin and dark malt, bitter cocoa....flavour is similar, damn that is one nicely hopped stout, terrific bitterness from the astringent dk chocolate and hops, very nicely balanced with the creamy and thick molassas and brown sugar...very smooth and easy to drink...very tasty stuff...

Sampled at the great Boise tasting 1/16/10
Appearance: Black with a large tan head and lacing left in the glass
Aroma: Molasses, dark fruits, coffee, chocolate
Taste: Roasted malts, dark fruits, chocolate, coffee
Very smooth beer. One of my favorites of the night of many good Imperial Stouts.

Bottle (Vintage 2007 - #253) at home - Thanks to Me.Pitch black - brown head. Nice hoppy, burned, chocolate, sharpness, licorice, bitterness, white sugar, sweetness, coffee, fruity. And a lot more - Fantastic. Powerfull.

Bottle: The aroma consists of dark chocolate, perfume, pine, roast, black licorice, and faint caramel. The aroma is nice, but is somewhat lacking in comparison to everything else about the beer. It pours a dark brown, virtually black, and a quarter inch beige head that leaves sporadic lacing. The flavor starts lots of chocolate, fruit, and caramel. The finish is moderately roasty with some light-moderate citrus and piney hops. Medium-full bodied with soft carbonation and creamy mouthfeel.

08 version. Dark fruit, coffee, roast malts, tobacco and earthy hop bitterness on the nose. Pours dark brown, more or less black with a thin beige head. Flavors of sweet caramel, chocolate, and roasted malts with a good dose of earthy bitterness in the finish. Lingering sweet/bitter finish that is interesting. Solid body, nice mouthfeel. Good stuff.

2007 vintage. Pitch black with decent pale beige head that leaves a lot of creamy lacings. Wonderful aromas of roasted malts, dry coffee notes, rich fruity notes (plums, cherries, figs) and hints of spicy hops. Very balanced and very impressive. The taste is nothing but fantastic - really balanced and spot on. Everything is where it’s supposed to be. The flavors are very complex - sweetness from the malts, salt licorice and a bitter finish. Powerful roasted malty aromas and notes of luscious dark fruits, a hint of molasses, tannins, coffee, wood and leafy hops. The finish is somewhat dry and bitter with notes of licorice, leafy hops and malts. Full-bodied with a fat and creamy malty mouthfeel. Gentle carbonation. Almost unbelievably good. Very balanced. The composition is like a symphony - carefully orchestrated with everything at its proper place. Serving type: bottle (Copy of old Beer Advocate review)

Bottle shared by Axilla. Thanks. Poured dark black in color with a medium sized tan head. Aroma of raisins, chocolate, roasted malts. Tastes of roasted barley, dark fruits, bakers chocolate, toffee. Light alcohol in the finish.