Three Floyds Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout

Brewed by Three Floyds Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Munster, Indiana USA

Well it took years to finally sample one of these, and a huge thanks to JMFG for bringing this to the throwdown. 2007. Very dark, shows just a little red at the edges. Super rich roasty , chocolate and coffee nose. Bigger chocolate flavors. Really really smooth and everything merges into a unified whole, so its very well balanced and exceptionally drinkable. Some molasses sweetness emerges but its still very balanced leading into the shockingly semi-dry finish, where there are touches of tannins to give a long lingering huskiness.

2008, black wax courtesy of drewbeerme. Pours a viscous, syrupy black. Molasses prune and plum aromas. A little hot at first but the fades as it warms and gives you a bit of a roasted coffee and chocolate flavor. Finish is sticky sweet. The aroma is pretty intense and flavor is really good. This is a high powered drink that I am definitely feeling the effects of.

2008 Bottle sampled at the Hopsnobbery Collective stout tasting on 1.16.09. Pours darkest brown to black with a very thin light brown head. Aroma of molasses, black cherry and alcohol. Creamy vanilla flavor up front, giving way to black cherry, chocolate and alcohol. Coffee and hop finish perfectly balances the sweetness of the vanilla and molasses. Hype well deserved.

22oz bottle, courtesy of TheEpeeist, big thanks Chris. Super thick, super dark pour with a nice brown head. Sweet dark malt aroma. Sweet, creamy flavor, slight hint of coffee, very well put together. This is very good. Definitely worth the ratings it’s got.

(22 oz. bottle (2007) via trade with BBB63, thanks Mike!, cellared for 1 yr. after trade) Pours very, very dark brown with absolutely no head. Inky brown and thick-looking. I’m surprised by the no head which kind of gives it the appearance of thick black prune juice or thickened black coffee. Dense aroma jumps right out at you - chocolate, raisin, prune, port, molasses, roastiness, possible hint of wood or something old. I didn’t want to waste much time sniffing and all the elements seemed to be captured with a few whiffs. Mouthfeel is smooth, thick, very lightly carbonated, fairly silky and just a touch of sticky/syrupy feel. No lacing as there is no head but there is a hazy brown film left inside the snifter. Flavor is sweet and thick - lots of dark chocolate, port and raisin with some molasses, prune and coffee roast. Not much disguising here, it’s pretty much all up front. Little bit of warm booziness but the ABV is amazingly well-covered. One of the better-tasting beers I’ve ever had.

Courtesy of LinusStick, as I told you I would save it for a special occasion, so now finally ;) It is a vintage 2007, and today is 2009.01.10. It is truly pitch black and it has a small, dark brown head, that disappears relatively quickly. The mouthfeel is oily and it draws dark brown curtains on the inside of the glass. The aroma has notes of dark fruits like plum, figs and raisin, but also dark roasted malt, citrus, licorice and dark chocolate. The flavour has sweetness and notes of dark fruits, plum, figs, coffee, licorice, caramel, a little chocolate, a touch of an angels wing, a piece of the softest cloud and a glimpse of the forecourt to hell... The finish is very long, slightly dry with a roasted bitterness and a touch of citrus. It is incredibly complex, that has a strange mellow smoothness combined with a becoming bitterness. It probably is one of the most intense beers I ever have had, and it is like a fine cognac – you sip it. It would impossible to drink a bottle on my own, and even if share it with my husband, we both feel, that it is very demanding. But it was fantastic finally to try it, and perfect for my # 5000 rating.

First of all, my church pastor drank half of this with out my permission on Christmas Eve....lucky for him I was feeling generous. This is probably the thickest beer I have ever sampled, both in the pour and mouthfeel. Aroma is a blast of coffee, dark chocolate, and roasted malt. Alcohol presence is subtle at first. Mouthfeel is like drinking motor oil. Flavor explodes on the palate with a complexity of coffee, dark chocolate, dark fruits, dark sugars and roasted malts. Not so much in your face, and not really that complex, but flavorful nonetheless. Finish is not that bitter. the only disappointment with this beer is that I found it too be not as complex as other Imp Stouts, and I don’t necessarily agree with the hype of the beer.

Thanks to trevor211 as the highlight of an incredible beer night. Incredible pour, head rises unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, oddly like the label says. Burnt edges of a brown-bottle head looks like used, fermented motor oil. Thick like a milkshake; Intensely rich; Frothy and needs a spoon. Unreal, scary. Dark chocolate, aged balsamic. tasty, oily, richest beer I’ve ever had ... notes explosive but with more flavor than WWS and Angel’s. Head steams and stays like a picture of Jupiter’s atmosphere. Heavy like malt extract.. incredible viscosity, reminds of Bailey’s irish cream, but tastier! this will end you, we even tried dunking bread in it and it was great. Biggest complaint is that the ’Russian’ on the bottle doesn’t mean anything!