Mikkeller 黑 / Black

Mikkeller
Brewed at De Proefbrouwerij
Style: Imperial Stout
Copenhagen V, Denmark

Name: Black
Date: 04/05/2008
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting

Appearance: black, fine tan head, drippy lace,
Aroma: dry roasted aroma with a lot of dark chocolate,
Flavor: huge roasted malt flavor, lots of black chocolate character, strong roasted coffee, lots of bitterness of of the roasted characters, winey caramel sweetness comes in for adds complexity and balance,
-------- /> Name: Black
Date: 05/11/2008
Mode: bottle
Words: cellar party

Aroma: picking up some dark caramel sweetness in the aroma in addition to the rich roasted and dark chocolate, alcohol is coming through after a while adding to the winey sweetness,
Overall: the winey caramel sweetness is much more up front, still dominated by heavy roast and bitter dark chocolate, the sweetness starts to pick up a candy sweetness, alcohol kicks in big time upon warming,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.8/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

Held directly up to the Miami sun there’s nothing but black, not even around the edge of the glass. Fat, almost iodiney nose, with accents of bicycle inner tube, burnt chocolate and a whack of alcohol. This stings. It has a smokey taste - very intense - with rich roast, wood, and a big fat alcohol finish. Really, it’s all intensity and not an ounce of nuance. Not well made at all. After a couple of drops it gets obnoxious.

Bottled 2007-12-12, 1 year old
Yes, it’s black; it seems almost flat, but pouring the beer from a height it forms a brown head; some big bubbles resist, it looks like fermenting wort. It has an aroma of wood, vanilla, chocolate, alcohol, very light cardboard. Good body strength (not viscous), with very strong sweet caramel flavor, rhubarb candies, light herbs and light roasted malt; then also some sweet liquorice appears, still hidden by the sweet caramel; no bad alcohol flavor, but a very burning feeling. Long final, balanced, with sweet caramel and some roasted malt and liquorice.
I like that it doesn’t show strong coffee character. It’s like drinking an Italian digestive (liquor; a mild version of Unicum comes to mind); a unique one, very enjoyable for me.

To celebrate my 900th rating. Black with large brown head. Aroma is packed with hops and I get notes of roasted malt, chocolate, liquerice, coffee, overripe fruits and alcohol. Loads of alcohol in the flavor but the hops blances it nicely. Again roasted malt, dark bitter chcocolate, port and coffee notes. Lovely!

(375ml bottle, cork stamped with 12/12/17) Small but persistent brown head atop a jet black body. Nice lacing. Aroma is moderately sweet, dark chocolate, coffee/roast, plum, some alcohol, light smoke, soy. Taste is sweet, brown sugar, coffee, alcohol, vinous, chocolate, some smoke/peat, pine/grapefruit, soy. Both alcohol burn and warming in the finish. Full body, but even it cannot contain the overpowering alcohol. More power to anyone who can enjoy an entire body of this.

Bottle at Post Zythos Struise Tasting 08. Black with lasting tan head. OK, I normally don’t go for these big intense beers with very high ABVs. Which was what amazed me about this one. Fried onions on the aroma. Lots of heat. Huge intensity. Just a stunningly huge beer. But not impossible. Very bitter coffee, espresso coffee. I mean, it shouldn’t work, but it does. OK, so the alcohol makes you feel good, but overall it really is stunning. Thanks to Urbain for this one.

Bottled
Pitch black, small brown head. Strange aroma: black tyre, alcohol, brandy, licorice - very unique. Flavor has tyre-rubber, sherry, licorice and alcohol - it is a volcano explosion in the finish. Some sweetness too. Aftertaste is loooong, roasted and alcoholic. This is demanding beer, propably changes after few years cellaring, but now it is a bit too much to drink liquid tyre. I can’t say that I enjoyed it.

To celebrate my Danish beers rating #1000!!! It’s more than pitch black, more black than pitch black and the head is nice and creamy and dark brown - amazing! The aroma - oh, where to start. It’s very complex with a lot of different notes, among others hard roasted malt, coffee, licorice and dark fruit - and still quite a bit of alcohol, but it’s still very young (April 2008). The mouthfeel is like engine oil, but the flavour certainly isn’t! It has sweetness, alcohol, hard roasted malt, licorice, coffee, dark fruit and a roasted bitterness. The finish is long, long, long... It’s still rough, wild and raw, almost brutal - but at the same time it’s very exciting and nice and challenging for your taste buds. I’m happy to have more of this stuff in the cellar, and I look forward to tasting it some years from now.