Dark Horse Reserve Special Black Bier

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

Holy crap this is some nice porter. Pours a deep black with a smallish dark tan head that eventually fades to a long lasting espresso swirl style head. The aroma is at first very strong with vanilla some roasty notes almost a peaty character finished with a strong hazelnut aroma. The flavor is a little vanilla at first that fades away right quick then it is very dry and bitter, strongly roasty with some great coffee tones, plenty of molasses and a nice little nuttiness and raisin in the background. Complex and awesome.

Not sure what this beer wants to be, perhaps it doesn’t want to be anything except for a tasty dark ale. Opaque brown body, very dark color. Thin brown head and spotty lacing. Aroma of burnt pan leavings, roasted malt, coffee and more roasted malt. Thick with an upfront bitterness followed by a burnt kick. Finishes full. Heavily roasted flavor with an English malt influence. Some dark berries and lots of bitter hops. A lingering after taste of coffee and nuts.

12 oz bottle courtesy of SamGamgee. Poured a dark, brown/black wiht a minimal tan head. Nose of chocolate and coffee.The taste was of roasted malts and bittersweet chocolate. did not taste too heavy and had a nice dry finish.

12oz bottle. Almost black color with a beige head. Milk chocolate aroma with emphasis on the milk part; creamy, burnt, and a bit smokey. Dry and roasty in the finish with some chocolate sweetness to start, and a firm hop bitterness. Medium bodied with medium carbonation. You might guess that this was lower in abv by how it drinks.

Bottle courtesy SamGamgee. Pours blackish with brown highlights and a dark tan head. Aroma is straightforward milk and dark chocolates, with maybe a lactose note. Super roasty flavor with black, roasted, burnt barley notes and an even bitterness. Dry, maybe a bit astringent. Still pretty good.

Bottle, thanks Shawn. Pours black, with a brown head. Aroma is chocolate, coffee, malt, and some hops. Flavor is chocolate, hops, coffee, and dark fruit.

12 oz bottle
Thanks for someone for sending this as a bonus. Now that it is available locally I may have to pick up a sixer in the future. While it is not a spectacular porter it is well enough done to merit the roughly $10 price point for six bottles. I hope more Dark Horse makes it way to Ohio soon.

Aroma / Appearance - The tan thin head and black fluid body contain a mix of smoky chocolate, rich coffee, and maltiness. It smells much like you would expect a porter to smell, especially one from a brewery who knows what they are doing.

Flavor / Palate - Smoke, bittersweet chocolate, and an intense roasty aspect form the base of a solid experience. Without being over the top in coffee grounds it gives a smooth espresso-like flavor to the finish. At 7.5% ABV it is very drinkable and worth investigating further.

Black beer with a frothy dark tan head, very nice lacing. Sweet malt aroma like chocolate covered dark fruits, powerful but not overly so. Aroma is more powerful than the flavor but flavor is much the same. Bit of a sour bitter finish. Coffee in the finish. Nice and easy to drink.