Surly Darkness

Brewed by Surly Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota USA

Bottle generously shared by bhensonb. This dark brown ale poured with a thin tan head and a strong chocolate aroma. The flavor is so intensely chocolate, it’s as if I’m drinking a chocolate bar. The taste is smooth and clean with a pleasant alcohol finish. Thanks Bill.

Bottle from Guerde. Thanks a bunch Andy. Marcus really enjoyed this. Pours really dark black/brown with little head. Aroma suggests celery, and chocolate. lots of dark malt. Full bodied with mild carbonation. Goes from choclate to caramel in a split second. Super smooth. So many flavor variations: chocolate, cherry, coffee, treacle, and incredibly not harsh. Goes extremely well with Chimay GrandCru cheese.

A - Pours an almost pitch black stream that settles like tar in the glass. Not much of a head, just a thin sheet of mocha head that lasts forever. S - smells pretty sweet, but not as bad as fresh Dark Lord. A small bit of roasted malts, chocolate, and a touch of dark fruit rounds it out. T - Roasted chocolaty malts with a hint of prunes. Definitely less sweet than the smell, but any bit of hops is pretty much gone. Aftertaste of cigars and coffee. M/D - This is thick and frothy beer. A great mouthfeel, but it is way to thick to be extremely drinkable. One bottle is going to take me a while to finish, but I’m enjoying every sip.

2008 draft at Blue Nile Mpls viscous oily black with thin tan head that disipates quickly leaving slight lace. strong coffee, chocolate, molasses, and brown sugar flavors with coffee and brown sugar on the nose.Flavors are nicely balanced and mellow. [his may be the best stout and best beer I have tried.

2009 bottle. Poured viscous oily black, with a perfect caramel/tan head that lasted throughout the snifter. Aroma was very strong hops, surprisingly. The taste was phenomenal and like no other I’ve ever had. Had a hop citrus flavor up front, switching to cloying sweetness of dark fruits, then to malty sweetness, and then finally to a hop bitter finish. Perfectly balanced with a perfect mouthfeel, best I’ve ever had!

2008 vintage bottle split three ways in tulip glasses. It was nice and viscous coming out of the bottle. A small tan head rose form each pour then settled to a thin lace but a simple swirl of the glass would bring it back. The body of the brew was a midnight black with light maroon highlights. The first aroma I got was a slight oxidation which was to be expected with the age. Then I got some wonderful aromas of molasses, brown sugar and some slight dark fruits. The brew was towards the sweet side again I would expect it was from the age but it really made for an enjoyable sipping experience. Again I got the molasses, a hint of vanilla and dark fruits. I must say the roasted malts were showing up more as sweet chocolate than a roasted coffee note, Which added a bit uniqueness to the flavor. The brew was thick and viscous in your mouth with a slight carbonation for the tongue. Just the way I like a stout. A great stout I would stand in line for it. The glass went down dam easy. I didn’t get any hint of the alcohol seeing it was a 10%brew. I would gladly drink it again. big thanks to Packforever1976 for hooking me up Serving type: bottle

2008 draft poured near black with a huge brown head. Chocolate, coffee, and and anise aromas are heavily present. Taste is chocolate, toffee, raisins, and cherries. Insanely big bodied and it goes down smooth while coating the palate. Amazing Russian Imperial Stout, Darkness is easily one of the best beers I have ever had.