Pours a rich black color with frothy light brown head. Aroma is of anise, dark roasted malt, light chocolate, and some spent coffee grinds. Taste is of light chocolate, roasted malt, mild coffee and some anise/icorice notes. Carbonation is well suited for the brew and alcohol is very tame. Very tasty! I’d pick this up again if I didn’t get stuck paying $5 for a ceramic bottle.

Pours a pitch black with a thin off-white head that leaves some spotty lacing. Aroma is rum, raisins, brown sugars, and some rich dark chocolate. Taste is bitter up front, some smoke, and finishes with some semi-sweet chocolate.

Bottle. Pitch black with tan frothy head. Chocolate aroma, smooth and sweet like a rich, rum-drenched chocolate cake. Good body and mouthfeel with quaffability and soft substantial carbonation. Slightly burnt but a nice sweetness throughout . Comes across as being too short. Would like it to linger more. Does not have a lot of depth but still has nice chocolate and coffee robustness. Not a "wow" beer but very nice.

Sample at the Columbus Ratebeer gathering at ogglethorp’s 11/20/08: The beer pours nearly black with a medium light brown head that diminishes steadily. Patchy sheet of lacing. Roasted malt, chocolate and hops aroma. Medium, dry body with a roasty character and flavors of coffee, hops and chocolate. Toasted malt balances the bitterness well. The finish is cocoa and malt, leaving a mild hoppy aftertaste. Pretty good overall.

Near black body. Thin, light brown head. Chewy aroma with some dark fruit and light chocolate. Rich dark fruits and a burnt coffee character. Less than what I wanted.