Holy Mackerel Mack in Black

Brewed by Florida Beer Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Melbourne, Florida USA

Super Dark with minimal lighter fluffy head. Aroma is sweet and roasty with hints of fruit. Taste is sweet and creamy and I wouldn’t pick out pom right away but it is slightly tart coming through the coffee. Pretty good overall.

12oz bottle, 2008 vintage, from daknole--thanks Dakine! Deep mahogany with ruby highlights and a small tan head, fading to a ring and thin film rather quickly. Dominant aroma is Hershey’s Chocolate syrup--the kind you use to make chocolate milk or put on ice cream--with some light roast and some nondescript fruitiness that I can’t place as pomegranate. The flavor does get a little bit roastier but still the Hershey’s dominates, and plenty of sweetness to be had (not cloying, though). There was also a little bit of vanilla. Still couldn’t pick out any Belgian yeast, or which fruit I tasted. The finish was fairly ashy, unfortunately. Light prickly carbonation with a medium full body. Pretty sweet impy--not a so much roast, if that’s your thing.

12 fl oz bottle, courtesy of Papsoe/bullzeye. Pours dark brown to black with a diminished tan head. Smooth roasted malty aroma with a nice note of dark chocolate. Sweet caramel/toffee malt with a nice roasted and light breadish flavour. Light fruity touch. Sweet and roasted flavour into a mild acidic far finish.

12 oz bottle
Thanks to daknole for sending this a few months ago in a trade. Now that the site appears to be back I can finally enter my belated rating. This was a decent experiment with blending stout and fruit but overall I think the novelty wears off about halfway through. The last six ounces were pretty boring; this was an average imperial stout at best.

Aroma / Appearance - The short lived tannish head served as garnish for the black oily body underneath. A sticky film of lacing made it evident this was not a low alcohol release. The nose was a blend of smoky dark chocolate, raisins, pomegranates and malt. A oily texture held everything together.

Flavor / Palate - The mouthfeel was much more carbonated than I was expecting. Fruity and fluid it washed across the tongue leaving a trail of chocolate, smoke, black coffee, and plum. The warmth of the ABV comes out in the finish which also serves to moisten the back of the throat. A unique twist on the typical imperial stout I’m still not sold that this is anything more than a one trick pony. Nonetheless I would probably give it a try again if I were in the area and it was on tap.

Got a larger sample of this one and I’m going to give a redo. Pours a dark black with a one finger tan head. The nose is sweet, a bit grainy, soy is pretty prominent, some roast, coffee, and chocolate. The flavor shows some soy sauce, a little bit of alcohol, grainy in the flavor as well, not sure I pick up the pomegranate juice, sweetness is there though, a mild hop profile. The palate is crisp and a little warm.

12oz bottle. Vintage 2008. Solid dark brown color, medium brown colored foam. Sweet aroma. Smells like chocolate malts, tart pomegranate, and lots of amaretto. Odd flavors. Lots of bitter tangy pom juice. Very deeply roasted barley flavors. Add coffee bitterness. Lots of toasted bread, chicory, burnt grains, some kind of coffee liquor essence. What a strange flavor, it would be spectacular to cook with. This beer is definitely not what I expected. It is very good. UNIQUE.

Bottle 12fl.oz.
Clear dark red brown color with a average, frothy to creamy, good lacing, mostly lasting, beige to light brown head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, burnt, dark chocolate. Flavor is moderate to heavy sweet and heavy bitter with a long to average duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft. [20081129]

Bottle. Aroma is roasty with chocolate acidity. Black with a bubbly thin brown head. Good thickness with chocolate and coffee, very light on pomegranate. Smoky/roasty finish. Sharp palate but with a decent thickness.