Mikkeller Black Hole

Pours deep black into a snifter. Mocha head slowly recedes to skim surface. Deep chocolate, espresso and alcohol aromas. Soy and espresso with a lasting alcohol finish.

Ok for all the posts I’ve made about imperial stouts being overrated and a fad, this beer may have changed my mind. I don’t know how many times I’ve said I’ll never pay $10 for another imperial stout...but I broke down and thought, when am I ever going to be able to try Black Hole...so I bought it. And it was delicious. Now I’m just mad that Speedway and Expedition weren’t as delicious. Now I’m going to have to spend more money on all those stupid Imperial Stouts I swore I was never going to try....

Anyway...Dark brown color with small diminishing dark brown head and very little lacing. The rich aroma is the best thing about this beer. Intense roasted aroma that’s a little musky and sweet. Flavor is very good. Extreme coffee flavor as to be expected, creamy and sweet in the middle and bitter at the end. At 14% abv it’s a lot better than Mephistopheles- more flavor and less alcohol burn. Surprisingly, I didn’t get bored drinking it like some beers- each sip was as great as the one that preceded it. There aren’t many 12 oz. beers I’d buy for $10, but this one was pretty decent.

375 ml bottle.Do they even make a 750ml?Aroma like Jaegermeister meets Starbucks, but in a good way. A decent head for a stout, but not a huge one from an absolute point of view. Damn tasty, but, if you’re in California, the North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Stout is probably better value for money. Elsewhere, this is a fine alternative.

dam good beer here. Not as coffee’y as i’d hoped but it’s there. the 14 %abv is just ever so slightly evident in the throat. nice creamy mouthfeel. black as night. great stuff. seems a bit tart/sour right at the end but fades fast to a nice boozy taste.

375 ml bottle. Black body with a small creamy brown head. Boozy dark fruit aroma with some hoppy citrus notes. Surprisingly bitter flavour, roasty acidic coffee notes. Hot alcoholic undertones, strong eye opening acidic character to the finish lingers is a bit rough and is not particularly welcome. Smooth medium palate. (3+) Very interesting with a lot of depth and character but I do not know if I particularly want more. Good in its way, but ultimately rather disappointing, I had hoped for something different. Following it up with the Nogne Dark Horizon cast it in an even less flattering light.

375ml foil-wrapped, caged & corked bottle (cork was synthetic). Pours a completely, opaque black. The head forms slowly into a thin brown layer and then subsides quickly into next to nothing. The aroma is strong and complex: strong roasted notes, dark chocolate, dark cherries, hints of acid/vinegar, herbal notes (a subtle mint if you get a really big whiff), and alcohol. The flavor starts very roasty with coffee, dark chocolate, alcohol, and dark fruits. The middle of the tongue picks up more fruit (interesting fruity bitterness with hints of acid/sour). There are some very strong roasted and almost savory notes all over the tongue. The layers of flavors are complex - lots of fruit, coffee, chocolate, and malts. The finish continues the trend with a subtle sourness and a not-so-subtle level of roasted grains and coffee. The finish is also hot with alcohol (next time I find this one, I’ll cellar it for a couple of years...). The texture is medium in body (unexpectedly light given the strength and maltiness), quite oily after you swirl it in your mouth a bit, and zippy all over the tongue from a decently high level of carbonation (despite the lack of head upon pouring). Overall, a very interesting beer with lots of intriguing flavors - but quite rough around the edges at this age (I just bought it one month ago - so this beer definitely needs some cellaring).

What a pleasure to drink tis beer! Pours black with 1 finger of thick tan head. Some really nice lacing as well . Soy, roast, and molasses on the nose with notable hints of coffee. Roast and chocolate up front finsh’s with a blast of alcohol. This one is really gonna be nice in a few years. A true winter warmer.

Sampled at dickinsonbeer’s gathering on 12-28. opaque black in color. Aroma is tons of roast and chocolate, a moderate amount of alcohol, light notes of soy sauce and molasses. Taste is very roasty with alot of chocolate, some burnt sugars and molasses, and somewhat hot with ethanol. Medium to full body, finishes with alot of roast, chocolate, and some alcohol burn. This is going to be awesome once it mellows. Thanks goes out to whoever shared this bottle!