coldmeat23 (185), Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA Nov 18, 2009 Pours black. Actually, it appears to be such a deep dark brown that light will not penetrate it. Three-finger head of dense light brown colored foam. Excellent retention and massive lacing. Probably some of the best lacing that I’ve ever seen, at this point.
The chocolate really stands out, in this one. It brings a big toasted maltiness with it. Nice roasted coffee notes. Hints of vanilla and caramel. A little bit of smoke.
The chocolate is still big hare, like in the nose. The coffee stands up next to it, though, to give it some balance. Big roasted malts. Not much hop presence, at all. Just a touch of vanilla cream.
Good medium body, here. Not quite full. Just a touch too waterey, for me. Would like it to be a touch creamier.
Very tasty brew, all-in-all. Nice stout with some good chocolate flavor. Very drinkable. Would be good for a cool night.
With the economical pricing of Rogue beers, this would be a great one to have on hand, most of the time.
ricke (186), Malme, Sweden Nov 18, 2009 Pitch black with a surprisingly big, brown head that settles into great looking lacings.
The aromas is basically just of sweet chocolate mixed with distinct yet not overly powerful roasted malts. Some chocolate syrup, chocolate powder and a faint milky note. Not bad, but certainly not very complex.
Very distinct flavor of sweet chocolate from start to finish. The chocolate flavors aren’t that luxurious though, they taste more like cheep dark chocolate, milk chocolate and chocolate syrup. Some dark toffee. Just a hint of dark fruits (plums?). Plenty of roasted malts, not very powerful though and they certainly are overshadowed by the chocolate. In the finish coffee flavors make a fairly good attempt at balancing the sweet chocolate flavors and gives the beer somewhat of a mochaccino edge to it. Some very gentle chocolate bitterness and mild grassy hops in the finish as well, and of course more chocolate. Unfortunately, the finish came out a bit short and boring to me, nothing really takes the lead and the taste just fades away too quickly.
Medium body, actually thinner than I had expected. Quite a lot of carbonation. However, it seems like some time in the snifter serves this one well since it gets a little rounder and and the mouthfeel gets somewhat smoother after a while.
A good beer, but I don’t think it managed to live up to my expectations. Indeed, there is a lot of sweet chocolate flavors going on here and that’s the way it should be, but it would have been nice with a little more complexity and a bigger body. Still recommended, though.
Serving type: bottle
(Copy of old Beer Advocate review) ttutony (27), Texas, USA Nov 15, 2009 Similar to the Rogue Shakespeare stout only with more pronounced chocolate flavors. This was very enjoyable. TampaBrew (804), Tampa, Florida, USA Nov 15, 2009 Pours deep brown/black. Nose is loads of chocolate, sweet malts and roasted malt. Flavor is big roast, light smoke, cocoa powder and sweet molasses. joshpiledean (226), Ames, Iowa, USA Nov 12, 2009 See, I was planning on doing a proper rating for this beer, but I poured it and drank it all before I had a chance to give it justice. Anyways, it’s very very good, this is a beer that you should never turn down. grimreaperguru (14), santee, California, USA Nov 8, 2009 The appearance is a black colour with a creamy dark tan head.Has an aroma of chocolate and roasted coffee.flavor is of dark chocolate and notes of roasted coffee with a hop bite.Got the finish of a chocolate kickback and a bitter aftertaste that goes away in a few seconds.A fine stout overall. mcberko (133), British Columbia, Canada Nov 8, 2009 On tap at the Alibi Room. Pours black - extremely thick body of coffee, chocolate and malt, slight bitterness. Fantastic stout. poisoneddwarf (163), Rathdrum, Idaho, USA Nov 3, 2009 22 oz bottle. Pours black, black, black with a thick, thick, thick dark tan rocky head. Nice lacing. Aroma of roasted coffee, chocolate, malt. Bitterness lingers on the back of the tongue. Chocolate isn’t as prominent as I was hoping. Tastes pretty bitter for a sweet stout. What a quality beer though.
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