fredandboboflo (1431), East Setauket, New York, USA
| 3.6 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 4/5 | 14/20 | Apr 1, 2008 Updated: Oct 10, 2008Bottle, 2007. Aroma of chocolate, rich malts, alcohol, hints of dark fruit, some chalkiness. Flavor the same and more, rich, rich, rich. Chocolate and malt character gets sweeter. It was definitely boozy, might be a turn off for some, but for me the booziness just went right along with that rich, sweet, robust character (although probably a good decision to knock it down to 11%). Fun stuff. 8-4-9-4-17/4.2
2008 bottle reveals a great deal of astringency, and conversely a great weakening of the other flavors. Oddly grassy. Weaker mouthfeel. Disappointing. 6-4-5-3-11/2.9 Current rating approximately averages the two vintages. LilBeerDoctor (1543), East Setauket, New York, USA
| 4.1 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 9/10 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 4/5 | 16/20 | Mar 29, 2008 Updated: Sep 24, 2008Bottle, 2007 batch. Poured a dark brown, with some nice dark tan head. Aroma of chocolate, faint oat. Taste of chocolate (same chocolate malt as in Choklat, tasted like tootsie rolls), dark fruits, alcohol, bitterness. Mouthfeel was thick, sticky, some burn in the finish from the alcohol. I really enjoyed this one!
Update 9/24/08: Batch 2008. Definitely not as good, perhaps it needed some age? Lots of hops and vegetables (asparagus). Only a slight hint of roasty malt goodness. Nothing like the 2007 batch. I didn’t change my rating but I am disappointed.
Oakes (8166), Kowloon, Hong Kong
| 3.1 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 6/10 | 3/5 | 6/10 | 3/5 | 13/20 | Mar 25, 2008 Very dark brown. There is an oily fullness to an otherwise full chocolate character. Light alcohol, a hint of wood. Really, it’s not as rounded nor complex as Boundary Bay’s take on the style. DSG (1515), Tel Aviv, Israel
| 3.7 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 3/5 | 15/20 | Mar 25, 2008 Updated: Jul 27, 2008Bottle. 2007 batch. Black-colored, almost completely opaque, with a small brown head that disappears right away. Aroma of roasted malt, some chocolate and espresso and a bit of alcohol. A slightly sweetish flavor at first, with a lot of roasted character, oatmeal, some licorice and coffee which soon turns very dry, quite bitter, with notes of hops and some alcohol in the finish. Medium to full body, quite creamy. Good. KawaBomber (213), New Jersey, USA
| 3.6 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 5/5 | 6/10 | 4/5 | 14/20 | Mar 20, 2008 Draft: Pitch black body that light dares not shine through. Nice brown head leaves some drippy lacing behind. Very bready malty aroma w/ some sweet dark fruitiness hanging around. Heavy malts dominate the flavor, but the alcohol is a little too prominent for my liking. Not too fond of the finish either, waaaay too bitter/burnt. Palate is very robust, just too much alcohol standing out. AgentSteve (1379), SF Bay Area, California, USA
| 4.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 18/20 | Mar 19, 2008 Pours deep chocolate brown with a tan foamy head that dissipates quickly. Nose is chocolate and coffee, and just a hint of hops. Flavor is rich with a creamy mouthfeel and influences of espresso, chocolate, leather and an oak like accent. Touch of an alcohol burn throughout. Great brew. GregClow (2516), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| 4 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 7/10 | 5/5 | 15/20 | Mar 17, 2008 Bottle. Pours a very deep black with a ruby tint and a good sized dark tan head. Aroma is ridiculously rich, with notes of charred malt, dark roasted coffee, molasses, and tobacco. Big mouthfeel. Flavour - damn, there’s a lot going on here - molasses, licorice, espresso, very dark chocolate, some hints of dark fruit and smoke, and a warm, bitter, and slightly boozy finish. Would score it a bit higher if the alcohol wasn’t so obvious in the end notes, but still, this is a pretty damn fine beer. thehoff (569), Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
| 4.6 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 9/10 | 5/5 | 19/20 | Mar 17, 2008 The printing on my glass is black and this beer makes it look grey. No head. Thin tan bubble line. Smells awesome. Still too cold and yet it smells of sweet mollasses, dark dried fruit, malty. The taste is of sweet espresso, chocolate, with a nice alcohol bitterness at the end. LIke baking chocolate, extra cacao. It is a thick aftertaste but awesome. It coats your mouth with flavor.
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