Dark Horse Plead the 5th Imperial Stout

Brewed by Dark Horse Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Marshall, Michigan USA

The beauty of an opaque, black beer warns the drinker even before its consumption. It challenges "I am old, I am history, I am the pinnacle of saturation, I am what brewers strive to perfect." Rarely does any other beer style taunt me or make me question myself as much as an Imperial Stout. That said, looking at how that muddy, cinnamon-colored head forms nothing more than a thin collar at the edge of the glass lets me know this is strong. Aroma has everything I would expect from an Imperial Stout less the strong, black current/burnt fruit I prize so highly in this style. Instead it hits with cream, toasted white bread, molasses and maple syrup, higher/fruity alcohols, licorice, caramel, and even a subdued burnt fruit raises it head as the beer warms. After 10 or more minutes basking in the glory of the aroma I decided to taste it. Quite right, but still quite young. The palate was not as complex as the aroma and the alcohol showed itself as spiciness, warmth, and almost numbing on the tongue. One thing I really like about this beer is that even though there is an amazing amount of dark malts utilized in its production, it has no sour character.

Black Coloring with Espresso Head. Dark Chocolate, Dry Tasting Malt Aroma. Nice Roasts and Rich Sweet Malt Taste. Thin Mouthfeel. Nice Impy but Tastes Like in Becoming an Imperial, It May Have Lost Some of It’s Purity.

Original Rating, December 8, 2005. "Dark Horse Imperial Stout". Black color with no head. A slight aroma of bourbon mixed with a hodge-podge of grains. Taste is pretty plain barley. Some coffee on the finish. Watery body. Blah. 6/4/6/3/13

Re-rating, June 14, 2009. The bottle is about a year old by this time. Black color with no head. Light malt aroma. Strong molasses flavor. Plenty of chocolate and roasted malt. Just a shade of salt. The aroma is still lacking for some reason, but much tastier. This bottle was labeled Plead the 5th.

Bottle thanks to Styles inone of our trades.Thanks Chris.Pours very black with no carbonation at all,like an Exp. Stout.Nose is monsterous molasses and something like black licorice.Coffee and vanilla also?? Heavenly on the tongue,a good complex Impy with a lot of flavors doing a full smackdown on the tastebuds.

Poured black with a small tan head. Big roasted aroma with a fair amount of smoke and some Hershey chocolate underneath. Roasted flavor with more smoke and some coffee and chocolate. Very warming but otherwise alcohol is hidden. Medium to full bodied. I can drink a lot of these or at least try.

12oz, bottles acquired in trades with TAR, BBB63 & Pailhead (thanks – I’m glad I have a few bottles of this one!). Poured a dark black with brown at the edges with a very small sized brown head that completely disappeared. Aromas of chocolate, dark fruits (raisins), roasted malts and light alcohol. Tastes of chocolate, dark fruits, and coffee. Light bitter finish with light alcohol (but no where near the 10+%).

Thanks to Hopdog. Pours a black/dark dark brown. Very small head. Aroma of milk chocolate, dark fruits and slight alcohol. Flavor of coffee, chocolate, dark fruits, cocoa and some alcohol. Another nicely done Imp Stout.

Thick black body is almost headless. The aroma is richly malty with an almost smokiness. The flavor is sweet, with char and chocolate along with some dates. Slight bitterness in the back. I really dig this one, although it could perhaps benefit from a little drying out to keep it from being quite so sweet.