Dark Star Over the Moon

13th March 2008. Dark but hoppy beer. Just a little malt. Hoppy finish. Not too bitter.

From cask at Old Fountain. Pours dark brown with a golden redish glare with a small off-white head. Roasted malty and mild fruity. Roasted malty and light fruity hops flavour. Roasted, bitter and fruity finish.

Dark brown with a small off-white head. Aroma is fruity and floral with currants and roses and a hint of butter. Dry and malty caramel flavour with fruity esters and hops. Full body and a lasting bitter finish.

Cask, Blackfriars, Glasgow. Superb black mild, quite hoppy and very refreshing. Plenty of fruitiness in there, not too heavy and was defintely worth of a second pint......

Cask, Bree Louise, Euston. Reddy brown colour with minimal head. Aroma had a nice bit of dark fruit mixed with malt and slight hop. Flavour was similar and was slightly sweet with a pleasant spiciness. Light, yet pretty flavoursome for its strength. On the whole not bad.

Cask at The Butchers Arms, Herne: Chocolate brown almost chocolate milkshake coloured. Actually the flavour is almost a little choc milkshake. Very interesting, malty and a little hoppy. A strange mild, very drinkable though.

<i>Cask Conditioned at Sevel Stars, London</i>
Dark amber color with a creamy head (nitro probably). It has a very nice hop aroma (score between 7 and 8), and the flavor mixes both powerful caramel and hops; there is dark chocolate too. The final is long, with the dark caramel turning into roasted malt and the hop resins as well. And you don’t even notice the low alcohol (maybe only because of the dry and lean mouthfeel at the end). Hop is the key here. Satisfying, very good.

on cask @ Wenlock Arms (London). This was a good mild, but for some reason I preferred the Elgoods Black Dog I had earlier. This one poured clear ruby-brown with an average frothy beige head. Leafy/bitter aroma, medium roast grainy malt, has a hint of roasted coffee beans. The taste just seemed wan - weak, flat and thin, not much malt or roast or ... well, it was easy to drink, but I wasn’t encouraged to order another. Light-bodied, slightly acidic, a faintly harsh aftertaste ..... and this was freshly tapped, too! Just okay.