Mikkeller Black Hole

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

Cork/caged bottle. Poured pitch black with a soda like dissipating tan head - and thin. Eh. Aroma is a roasty, oaky chocolate - with faint bitter coffee. Flavor is a bit intriguing and yummy. Unfortunately, there is an intense boozy licorice at the forefront. An oily, spotty carbonated body tries to pull some bitter coffee and chocolate through, but the tingly booze really is the bully. It screams slight astringency. While it still resembles a beer in mouthfeel, the heat makes it drink a bit winey on some sips. But it still leaves a nice coat on the gums and mouth. While I can say I "like" this, it is really meant for the right mood - a blizzard perhaps? Overall, enjoyable, but a bit too raw for me. Too expensive for a 12 oz glass. Really curious to see what the original 100 tasted like.....ah well.

Bottle, courtesy of alexanderj. Black pour, with thin brown head that dissipated quickly. Small amount of coffee grounds in the aroma, mostly roasted malt, and some wine-like alcohol. Sort of heavy carbonation initially. Flavor is roasted malt, coffee grounds, alcohol, general astringency. Sort of just seems over-the-top.

Pours a three finger brown head that fades slowly to a thin layer leaving some lace. Black opaque color. Light-medium carbonation and heavy bodied. Coffee-alcohol nose. Flavor is roasted coffee and alcohol. Lingering burnt coffee aftertaste. Pricey at $10.09 for a 12.7oz bottle from John’s Marketplace Portland, OR. Label has the ABV at 13.1%.

Nice bottle presentation. Pours a rich dark black like a big ol stout should. Nice brown head with good retention. This baby has some viscosity! The carbonation seems a bit low, the cork didn’t really POP when it was opened. The aroma is of dark malts, dark fruit and alcohol. The taste is very robust with notes of licorice, coffee and plums. Notes of ash as well. This is a whopper of a beer but the alcohol might be a bit much as it’s hot from the start to the finish.

This one poured a deep black color with a thin tan head that left nice swirly lacing around the glass. You can tell from the first smell that this is a big beer. Huge roasty aroma from coffee and roasted malts along with some dark chocolate as well. The flavor is very intense as well with the roasty and coffee flavors coming through along with a big dose of dark chocolate along with some caramel and vanilla. The roastiness and bitterness in this one is really big. The mouthfeel is full bodied with a visous feel to it with a huge warming feeling from the alcohol all the way down. I would like to try this one again as I got a pretty small sample.

Jet black in color with essentially zero visibility. Short lived head of chocolate milk bubbly head. Aroma starts with chocolate-covered espresso beans are my first thought. Bittersweet dark chocolate paired with a Kona like roasted coffee. There’s a touch of vinous acidity to it as well. Very assertive flavor that takes awhile to get a hold on as there is a lot going on. Big roasted coffee bitterness and fusel alcoho, almost lighter fluid like. A dry, char, almost smoky wood huskiness. Very dry, astringent finish Thinner than expected with assertive carbonation that is slightly caustic. Overall, its got a nice aroma and some positive flavor elements, but I found the alcohol to dominate and not in a good way.

Bottle on 1/31/2008. Black with mahogany highlights and a durable, medium, light brown head that leaves nice lace. Espresso aroma with definite alcohol overtones, some bittersweet chocolate, and a hint of dark fruit. Full body, light carbonation, and a resinous, oily mouthfeel. Bitterness prevails, both dark malt bitterness and some spicy hop bitterness, all over a background of burnt molasses and treacle. Long, bitter finish that is more like a French roast black coffee bitterness than a hop derived bitterness.

The bottle is the size of a split bottle of champagne, interesting presentation for a beer of this caliber. The title gives you a hint of what to expect, pours a deep, oily, opaque black with a delicate, slim, white head. Smells of roasted malt, alcohol and chocolate. Flavor is heavy on the chocolate, dark fruit, nuts, and coffee. The finish has plenty of heat from the alcohol and is thick on the tongue and in the throat with a lasting coffee bitterness. Very complex Imperial Stout that is a rare symbiotic blend of flavor and heavy alcohol.