Three Floyds Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout

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

2009 on-tap @ DLD ’09 A - Pours black as night with a dark brown head that quickly vanishes leaving some very nice lacing. S - Lots of malt, chocolate, and some alcohol on the nose. T - Sweet, but not overly sweet, with chocolate, coffee, and a small kick of alcohol. M - Thick and rich, just coats the inside, so good! The 13% is hidden amazingly well for being so young. D - Amazing RIS, ’nuff said.

09 bottle. So for my 300th rating, I decided to have Dark Lord. I had high hopes, which usually leads to a letdown, so I decided to trick myself a bit to prevent this. I decided to do a blind tasting with Expy, 110K+OTB2, Founders Impy, and Speedway. I figured this way I would get my true opinion on it and not my worried letdown opinion. Well, needless to say, there was still a letdown. Pours a thick black with brown hue, absolutely no head to be seen whatsoever (upon tasting, but was able to coax a thin dark tan head out with farther pour), lots brown lacing around glass. Aroma is very solid of coffee, dark chocolate, dark fruits, some tart fruits, molasses, roasted malt, caramel, and hints of vanilla. First sip threw me for a loop. Cloyingly sweet, boozy, ever so slight tartness disguised many of the good properties of the brew. No hops detected at all. Mouthfeel is heavy and creamy. If it didn’t smell so good and look so nice, this would have been a much lower rating. I have an 07 and 08 bottle in the cellar that I will have to try to see if age helps this, but man, I am really starting to believe this is all hype and no substance. Especially when a $3 bottle of Expy beats the pants off the $15 bottle. *raises last half-FULL glass of Dark Lord* Here’s to hoping that it improves with age.

Shared at DDG release party. ’09 22oz bottle. Dark, dark, and dark. Sweet and good. All the usual expectations were met.

A finer Imperial Stout? I know not! 2009 Bottle poured into a thick walled Chalice. Oh how the Czars would envy me. Pours a deep black profuse sludge as if the Dark Lord himself has awakened from a slumber of centuries past. Already I can smell the scent of deep roasted malts, coffee, smoked embers, and nutmeg. The lacing clinging to the walls of my glass, but sliding ever so smoothly into the depths of midnight, where light ceases and something a bit abnormal begins. The first sip; smooth, chewy and thick. Perhaps this Lord of Darkness plays well with others? A robust hit of roasted chocolate careens my palate confused as to what it wishes to unleash next. A rush of sweet molasses and plum forces its boldness upon my senses. As the ferocity of the sip hits my palate a hint of nutmeg and cherries sneaks in through the back with hops infused in the grain. A strong but short burst of burnt and smoked woodiness ends atop the alcohol, clearly there can be no more. But the taste lingers and finally rests into a roasted smoked chocolate embrace. It’s enough to want to follow the Dark Lord into the underbelly, into the darkside, into the grave. And after sampling the elixir of this Demigod, I must pledge my loyalty to he who is the master of the blackest of nights, the overseer of the underworld of sludge, and the purveyor of all that is "not normal". To the Dark Lord.

2009- Aroma is extremely boozy, but underneath is roasted malt with coffee and chocolate tones. Flavor is very very boozy. Roasted malts, chocolate and coffee coming through. The booze wore off a bit after awhile. Never rated the ’08 but remember really enjoying it compared to this one.

2008 vintage opened w/Vferg 5/9/08. Pours jet black with little dark tan lacing at the top of the glass. DL is truely like motor oil, its so viscous and molasses. Flavor is creamier then you would think for 13abv coffee, chocolate, etoh, chalky vanilla. No CO2 and sludge at the bottles bottom. Coats your mouth in this rich black dessert. What a beer! On draft (EBF) this beer is just awesome. I cant believe one beer (DLD) can draw a 1000 beer lovers together for one hell of a tasting. Im told the balance this year is the best, i enjoyed this much more then the 07 bottled from memory. The best engine oil i’ve ever drank. 4.4

750ml bottle with white wax. Shared with MatSciGuy. Black as coal tar and almost as thick. A tan ring around the glass with good lacing capacity but little more than that for a head. Wealth of aromas with strong, sweet molasses, touch of vanilla and roasted malt aroma and flavor. Syrupy thick on the tongue and warming alcohol down the hatch. Overall an interesting beer, full of flavor and a pleasure to drink with the kid. My only complaint - a bit too sweet.

I decided yesterday to make the day special by cracking open a 09 bottle. A white wax topped bottle split between three of us in snifters. The bottle poured really thick like used motor oil but leaving almost no head. We tried to conger one up but to no avail. Maybe a bad bottle clue number one. The body of the brew was a typical black stout color with ruby highlights around the edge. One of us pulled a cardboard aroma, clue two on the bad bottle? I got an initial chocolate note followed by rubbing alcohol, yes this thing is big and boozy. I can’t wait to sample the 07 see how that one stacks up. The flavor was very roasted and hot. The last sip I got some nice dark fruit in there as well. To say the body on this brew was full would be an understatement. I do wish there would have been some carbonation on it. Drinking the brew was a treat. Like I said I have a few more bottles and I will be revisiting this one. I think some of my score on this bottle may have been from a bad bottle. It happens I know. I will rescore after I drink the next bottle. I know the scores should go up but wanted the brewer and others to be aware of a slightly oxidized bottle from a fresh batch.