Amager Sundby Stout

Brewed by Amager Bryghus
Style: Stout
Kastrup, Denmark

This bottled brew from a bottle shop poured a medium sized head of foamy with a frothy top light brown colored bubbles that were mostly lasting and left behind a semi-opaque softly carbonated dark ruby red brown colored body and a thick foamy lacing. The mild aroma was malty. The mouth feel was tingly at the start with a mellow finish with a mellow hoppy aftertaste. The flavor contained notes of mild hops roasted malt and dark malt. A decent one that I would consider buying again.

Bottle from Monument in Concord, CA. Pours very dark brown/black with a decent beige head. Aroma is mild coffee over sweet toasted malt. Medium body with lightly frothy carbonation. Flavor is about equal espresso and smooth burnt malt. It’s what Guinness should be. Finishes smooth, light coffee, mildly burnt, and delicious.

This dark brown beer poured with a modest tan head and a coffee aroma. The flavor is dark chocolate and plum with some carbonation and a bitter finish.

Bottle from Crown #19. Poured clear dark brown color with an average brown frothy head that mostly lasted with good lacing. Moderate sweet chocolate and floral aroma. Medium body with a smooth texture and flat carbonation. Medium toasted sweet malt flavor with a medium sweet finish of moderate duration. This beer would go well with a spicy dinner.

Bottled. Poured deeper brown with a short cap of beige head.. tight-bubbled on the middle and looser on the edges. The aroma picked up sweeter roasted chocolate and coffee notes paired with green earthy and floral hoppage.. licorice and a touch of tar when you dig deep.. the hops definitely kept this lively and interesting. The flavor found roasted sweeter chocolate and coffee again at the core, with darker, more burt malts laced throughout.. the hops again play a major role, with earth and citrus joining coffee bitterness on the edges.. well-balanced through the finish. Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation on the palate.. bitter overall, and I enjoyed the way it came together.

Bottle. Clear dark brown color with fine head. Chocolate aroma but not much chocolate in flavor. Bitter coffee and some fruity hops.

Dark greige head over near-black beer with some red reflections. Smoked, tobacco nose with a short sourish spike. Faint chocolate. Again tobacco/tobaccoash flavour, bit earthy and again some chocolate. Not more than medium bodied, finish is even a bit lean & thin. Pretty carbonated MF. Reasonable stout. Does not, however incent to have another one.

I don’t speak Danish or Norwegian or any of the languages native to that area of the world, aka Scandinavia. As an ignorant Anglo-Saxon, I have no doubt that I am butchering the pronunciation of the names of breweries and beers that come from these beer friendly countries. While a proud past history of brewing decorates the Danish history books, it is only until recently that, much like the rest of the world, inspired individuals tired of the same old tasteless beers have set out on a noble quest for flavor and diversity. As a result, there has been an explosion of craft brewers in Denmark brewing amazing beers. A cold country needs a soul-warming stout, and Amager Bryghus offers just that with their Sundby Stout, a Classic Danish Stout by their description.

He broke the day with a generous pour of still black night, broken only by a velveteen tan head. Fading to a constellation of fragile khaki bubbles, a thick ringlet looms along the edge of his domain. Always one to tempt fate, I give my glass a few swirls which produces desired aggravation and a fierce crackling of lace. If one looks at the night sky closely, there is no solid black, but a swirling cauldron of blacks. Tart prunes smack me around like a pathetic rag doll; there is an intense level of lactic acidity in the Sundby Stout and I am digging it. Dry dark chocolates dance beneath a tart prunish sky while cream, half & half, and vanilla root mingle like long lost lovers. A touch of mulchy dankness bespeaks a decade’s old untouched rainforest floor even as dried raisins and black licorice root are cooked into volcanic ashy bitterness. As I prepare myself to dive deep into his looming depths, his tart lactic acidity wastes no time in grabbing me by the scruff of my neck and plunging me into a vividly exciting brew. Thin and clean with perfectly balanced medium weight, the top of my tongue is jolted awake by a deluge of tart lactic acidity and tart prune juice concentrate. Even his finish lingers with a daring lactic twang, and I love it. As his lactic acidity and tart prunes permeate, dry burnt toast and licorice root highlight charred wood as I bite into dark chocolate covered espresso beans. His soft mouthfeel draws me ever deeper into his lair, and I find myself unconsciously slowing down as I near the woeful end of my glass. Dry black chocolates linger in my breath along with a faint floral touch. Some might find the sour lactic acidity highlighted by tart prune juice concentrate jarring, but he could be anything but. Every stretch of his deep black palate was an artisanal love affair I never wanted to end.

There is nothing more I can say that I haven’t said already. Find this beer, sup, and all things will becomes crystal clear.