Allagash Black

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Foreign Stout
Portland, Maine USA

Spectacular brew and a magnificent take on a very unique twist of a classic style. I love what the brewers at Allagash do. There’s no challenge that they won’t take a whack at. This one is a gorgeous deep brown (dare I say "almost" black?) with a rich foamy head. Aroma is mild coffee and strong roasted notes. Just a hint of chocolate. Rolls smoothly across your palate with the same burnt notes and roasty goodness. Not quite as bitter as some of your other stouts out there. Delicious. Pairs very well with a blackened piece of beef.

Nicely bittered, with just an acidic touch reminiscent of coffee. Underlying soft, sugary sweetness. Aroma of wood, baked bread and a little burned oatmeal. Alcohol apparent in the nose, but not the flavor. Goes down very easy, but at the moment the beer (in Expedition snifter) is still too cold; about 53-54 deg, but not warm enough yet. A little thin. Nice lookin’; a little lighter brown than expected.

Someone mentioned milk stout, and there is definitely a lingering lactic component to the flavor...

On tap at River Street Ale House in Pittston and listed on menu as Allagash Brun (retired beer). Nice initial sweetness somewhat supported by its yeasty character and bitter quotient but quite flavorful in the end. I wasn’t screaming for a repeat but it was pleasant to drink nevertheless. I didn’t really detect too many chocolate or coffee tones but am biased by what I drank before this one.

Tap. Pours black with a smallish head. Aromas of some bread, coffee and some cloves. Flavors of dough, yeast and coffee and dark fruit, in additopn there is some smokiness. Reminds me a bit of a milk stout. I think the body is too thin though, this flaw makes an otherwise outstanding beer only good.

750ml bottle via Mys Wap 3.0 (thanks to whoever sent!). Nose is sweet with belgian yeast. Taste starts with the sweet candy, cloves, bananas, then some roastiness. Body is light, carbonation is light/medium. The candy and burnt grains do not blend real well, leaving this a nice attempt but in the end a beer that seems confused and unsure of itself.

Bottle. Pours black with a thick chocolate colored head. Aroma was thick, roasted malt, and tobacco. Taste was sweet, roasted malt, tobacco flavored smokiness with a tinge of a copperiness. Thick and hardy on the palate. An excellent brew.

750ml bottle poured into a Sam Adams specialty glass. AB pours dark brown... just shy of black actually. The tan head is large and fluffy. The initial aroma is very metallic but the beer is colder than it should be. I’ll let it warm up first. Even after warming there is a very large metallic aroma that drowns everything else out. This stout is carbonated a tad higher than I expected but it doesn’t detriment to taste or palate. Allagash has created a stout that reminds me a great deal of Lion Stout (Sri Lanka) but a tad sweeter. As they claim there is a hint of roasted coffee and malt. The oats smooth the body out nicely. It’s a tad sweet for my taste but I’m willing to overlook that in light of the exceptional balance, complexity and uniqueness. The finish is oily and lingers long after the beer is finished to ensure you don’t experience post-stout-depression.

A very very well crafted stout. Pours dark back with a pretty thick head that slowly bubbles away. Taste is very smooth with a very earthy taste. Well balanced and worth the price. Another classic from Allagash.