Three Floyds Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout

2007 Vintage. What a great beer. Rich and very heavy, thick, and for slowly sipping. The bomber is really too much for one serving. Black and void of any color. Very little carbonation, nearly still. Aroma is full and has chocolate, coffee, fermenting fruit, plums, and malt. Incredible flavor, there are some hops, but not as much as Surly Darkness. Only a little coffee flavor, more chocolate and rich, sweet malt. The alcohol is very well hidden. Certainly a beer of the highest caliber.

Black of color with a brown head. An aroma of coffee, chocolate and notes of rye. A flavor of chocolate, coffee and liqurice.

Bottle thanks to Bager. sweet and very heavy. the thickness of this amazing beer is the best i have seen. Very heavy on chocolate taste. great great beer

Thanks to Sprinkle for this beer(2007). This will be my last beer that I will be rating for some time, due to my work conditions. This beer lived up to the hype that follows it. Poured beautiful and thick black velvet liquiod and no head to speak of. Taste was of course coffee chocolate and lots of vanilla. But I did detect some fort of raisin or fig aftertaste.I couldn’t believe how smooth this beer was. The mouthfeel was oily, but thick. Hard for me to explain. I did enjoy this beer alot

My 400th rating. Rating reflects 2007 version. With a freshly opened bottle of 2007 Dark Lord, notes on past tastings, and trusty snifter in hand, I finally have decided to sit down and rate one of the Holy Grails of beer geeks everywhere. Here it goes... 2007 vintage, drank 7/17/2007: Well, Nick suggested keeping this puppy cellared until Thanksgiving, but I couldn’t keep my hands off it that long. Hell, I made it 2.5 months, which is about 2.49 months longer than I thought I would. You can see the viscosity of this brew as you pour - it sticks to the sides of the glass and slowly runs down to form a thick black pool, impenetrable to light and topped with a thick brown head. The aroma hits me long before I get the glass close to my nose - roasted coffee, molasses, licorice, and dark chocolate accompany the pine resin and a moderate earthiness. The flavor is chock full of just about everything you would want in an imperial stout - this stuff is seriously complex. It’s tough to put into words, as everytime I take a sip, a new flavor emerges. Coffee, roasted nuts, molasses, chocolate, and rum battle it out with a serious dose of piney hops. Mouthfeel is silky smooth and very full, though it is a touch chalky, it may need some more time to settle out. DLD continues to be a great time (I’ve gone the past three years), cheers to the folks at Three Floyds for hosting the event! 2006 vintage: Like other vintages, this is opaque black with a firm brown head. Aroma is green and grassy, even after a year in the cellar. Green hops hit immediately upon tasting, with the coffee being notably more subdued than the ’05 version. For my tastes, the hops are too pronounced and do not integrate well with the rest of the flavors. Thinner bodied than other years. Still a very good IS, though. To be fair, I haven’t popped a bottle since it was relatively fresh, so it may have improved with age.(7/4/8/3/14 3.6) 2005 vintage (from several bottles over the past 2+ years): For a malt lover like myself, this one is just hitting it’s stride now. The hops have mellowed a bit, and the strong coffee flavors have integrated very well. Though, I must say I loved this one enough when it was fresh to go buy an extra case, and I’m glad I did. Similar flavor profile to the 2007, with the 05 having a bit more chocolate and vinous notes, while the 07 has stronger coffee and molasses. (8/4/9/4/18 4.3)

Silver wax, 2007 version (rated above) Pours out a very thick black color, but dark shades of red around the edges. Head is a creamy tan color, but did recede and leaves little to no lacing. Smell is of sweet caramel and molasses, cherry, alcohol, chocolate, and a little roastiness. Sweet malt and molasses, with a splash of hops, though they are fading, followed by port wine with a lingering soft roastiness. Vanilla seems to also join in the cornucopia of flavors, as well as others I’m sure I’m not able to name. Carbonation is very much on the low side; body is as thick as they come. I’d like to say it’s overhyped, but it’s just really everything I look for in an Imperial Stout. I had one bottle shortly after the release and it was pretty good, but age has already helped raise this one to elite status. 2004 (sampled at DLD 2008): Aroma is still amazing, flavor is good, but starting to get too oxidized. More detailed notes to come. 2005 (sampled at DLD 2008): This vintage is holding up awesome, if you have one left, it might be time to give it a crack, although it seems it still has some time left to develop. More detailed notes to come. 2006: Updated rating to come 2008: Incredible fresh out of the gate, could be the best vintage to date.

Draft at the Great Taste of the Midwest. Here we go! Unlike the Dreadnaught, this one lives up to the hype and somehow surpasses it. The aroma is the only flaw: big sweet, rich and boozy. Could be a little richer. Pours jet black with deep rich red highlights. Sweet, roasted malt, toffee, dark (and milk) chocolate, wood, whiskey, vanilla, raisins, plums, and hops on the palate. I honestly don’t know if I could stand any more flavor. Quite full bodied. Very rich with a mouth coating oiliness. Absolutely spectacular!

Re-rate. After multiple 07 bottles, one 08 bottle and a draft sample at the GTMW this year, I feel I have to give this one a re-rate.My tastes have definitely changed a ton over the last year and a half, and although I still like it quite a bit, it’s no longer what I look for in a beer. I thought the 08 was a lot more bitter and astringent with a much higher coffee presence than previous vintages.

I could go into some kind of long dissertation as to why this beer is so freaking good, but I think everyone knows what DL is all about by now. My only thought while sipping this nectar was "can it really be as good as the hype?" The answer is a resounding HELL YES!!! By the way, DL poured over cheesecake ROCKS!!!!