Dark Horse Reserve Special Black Bier

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

This beer pours an inky black, with very little tan head which does not stick around long. Aroma is strong coffee and chocolate malt notes. Flavor is coffee flavor and "burned pizza crust" taste, which is very good and well-matched to the porter style (in my opinion). Mouthfeel is thin - this beer is smooth (with the taste delivering a certain bitter bite - that’s a good thing) but needs more carbonation; it feels flat to me.

12oz bottle, pours pitch black with tan head. nose is very chocolaty, undertones of coffee, smoke, and dark fruits. flavor is extremely roasty, charred milk chocolate, dark fruits, and pretty bitter. mouthfeel is smooth but not as thick as a stout. this beer is complex but the flavors aren’t blended perfectly. to me this is really somewhere between a stout and an imperial stout not a porter, but it’s a great beer nonetheless. because it’s so good i can’t knock it for not being closer to style. when i want to drink a stout or imperial stout i’ll grab this and be happy. a great beer.

Bottle: Black pour with a small tan head. Aroma, coffee, roasted malts, some chocolate, an earthy bitterness. Flavor, bitter coffee, some chocolate, roasty flavors. Rich and thick on the finish. A pretty good amount of bitterness on the finish. Really good brew.

Good amount of chocolate in the aroma.Pours black with a large tan head.Bitter coffee and roasted malt stand out in the flavor.Medium to full mouthfeel with a bitter coffee finish.

Poured a dark brown with a minimal tan head. The color and consistency reminded me a lot of other stouts. The aroma was of roasted malt, with a hint of coffee and chocolate. Flavor was more of the same with just a touch of bitter thrown in. My only knock against this was that it was undercarbonated. Other than that, it was a good brew.

12oz. bottle thanks to SS MIBRomeo. Black with a small tan head. Mild roasted malt aroma with some dark chocolate and a bit of coffee. Flavor starts off quite bitter, with a harsh roasted taste. Mellows out after a couple of sips, with the chocolate coming through as well as a touch of hops. Quite enjoyable.

Bottle from my winter secret santa. Started drinking this around 58 degrees, perhaps a tad too warm. It works fine at room temp., but I noticed some great flavors right off that I stopped noticing as it warmed.

Aroma is lots of toast, peanut brittle, bitter bitter coffee, cherry. Nice pitch black pour with a good head. Flavor is not as assertive as the aroma, with a striking dry bitterness (more coffee bitter than hops bitter), char, light chocolate. Slightly thin up front, this ends up being slighty thick in the finish. Solid.

Bottle. Pour is oily black with a decent thick tan colored head. Aroma is chocolate, coffee, toasted malt. Flavor is coffee, chocolate, malt, caramel. Palate is full bodied with resiny feel to it. Very rich and creamy. Solid!