Mikkeller Black

**Aroma:** “Nose is relatively mild. Light chocolate up front. As it warms, a bit of alcohol and more chocolate. Low hops aroma, no sweetness. Light sherry note. As it warms, slight fruity esters (plum, pear, cherry). Less chocolate and roast than expected. Some woody English character. Black licorice mixed with dark chocolate.” **Flavor:** “Rich roast and chocolate up front that is moderately dry. Moderate astringency throughout the sip that emphasizes the alcohol at the end and into the aftertaste. Smooth and strong, roast is medium. Alcohol warmth gets your attention without being harsh. Hop flavors medium strong, resinous, spicy. Some tart notes in the aftertaste. Thin bodied.” **Overall:** “Dry with roast, chocolate, and alcohol that are all fighting to be #1. The roast and alcohol finish in the aftertaste leaving the chocolate hanging. Slight sharpie note, perhaps a bit too much black patent malt. Seems to be aged, mostly good oxidized but some flattening of malt notes.”

**Aroma:** “Unique notes in the aroma: some roasty character, red wine with some chocolate? Sweet and acetic with a hint of umami. Slight prune. Higher alcohols throughout the aroma. Some earthy toasty characters.” **Flavor:** “Sweet dark malt character. Lots of esters: plums, raisin, prunes. Chocolate character is there, and the roast sits behind the fruit sweetness. Some bitterness helps to cut the sweetness toward the finish with some warming character. Much less sour than I expected from the nose. Malty sweetness with dried fruit esters hit first, followed by caramel coffee and alcoholic warmth.” **Overall:** “This is a very sweet and fruity stout with nice dark fruit character, but it lacks some body and roast character. It lacks the richness of an imperial stout and needs more roast malt. Slight bitterness lingers in the finish.”

**Aroma:** “Hops! Fruity passion fruit, orange, lemon, grapefruit, dank resinous in the background—if I didn't see the color, I’d expect an IPA. Some dark roast and chocolate sweetness sneak through once your nose is dead to the hops. Light tart note. As it warms, a slight molasses note starts to mix with the hops.” **Flavor:** “High hops flavor up front with bit citrus notes. Moderate chocolate with big roasty notes support the hops. Quite sweet up front. Sweetness slowly fades into a low bitterness. Toward the end, slight smoke note but big hops that continue into the aftertaste with a mix of roast. Dry, bitter hoppy finish. As it warms, the smoke turns into a burnt molasses note. Very fruity: passion fruit and pineapple. Finish is sweet and lingers. Rich chewy body that doesn’t come across as thick. Big pine and orange flavors from the hops. Chocolate from the malt gives it a chocolate orange flavor. The sweetness comes together with all the different bold flavors and finishes with a slightly dry finish.” **Overall:** “A nice balance of stout and hops, but if you don’t like hops, this stout is not for you. Strong flavors all around with a touch of alcohol warming in the background to fill it all out. Good balance of hops flavor and bitterness. This is a very different take on a stout—kind of a black IPA more than a stout. This beer tastes like a better, less sweet version of those chocolate-covered orange candy sticks, but with a heavy dose of pine richness. Very tasty!”