Black Hole Ale

(Bottle 65 cl) Pours a clear, dark mahogany with a warm, reddish hue. The body is small and beige. Fruity, vinous aroma of roasted malts. Medium body with lots of hard roasted malt but only a vaguely burned touch. Very dry but not particularly bitter. A smooth and pleasant drink though. Courtesy of pineypower. 220207

Bottled. A black beer with a red shine under a fast disappearing brown head. The aroma is acidic from the roasted malt, combined with light notes of licorice. The flavor is slightly acidic from the roasted malt, combined with notes of coffee and soy sauce, leading to a dry and bitter end with strong notes of roasted malt and lesser notes of chocolate. I find the body a bit weak.

Poured a thick deep black with a creamy, thick off white head. Roasted aroma thats non-distinct. Initial flavor is very nice, roasted malt, coffee, caramel and chocolate flavors. Sweet and clean finish. Complex for a porter and little to no smoke.

Bottle from xproudfoot. Deep red-brown body, puffy dirty tan head. Roasty aroma, a bit soapy, with chocolate and butter. Lots of molasses in the body, paired with sweet milk chocolate and roast. Rich, velvety, and stout-like. The sweetness and soapiness remind me of Arcadia Starboard Stout, though this is a bit heavier. This is the kind of beer that’s best when restricted to one per sitting, but it is very good.

Dark cherry color with a thick brown head. Aroma of molassas. Coffee and caramel flavors.

Dark brown colored body with an average sized tan head. Chocolate milk aroma. As it warms, the chocolate increases but never intensifies to the level that the aroma has you prepared for. A bit thin in the body.

Bottle: Poured a dark color porter with a small foamy dark head with average retention. Aroma of roasted malt and coffee is rally enjoyable and really easily detectable. Taste has got a really creamy texture with the mix of roasted malt and coffee being well balance. I really did dig this porter because even though it is not extreme in any way it is very well balance.

The cheesy label almost kept me from trying this stuff - a servicable porter, but nothing exceptional here - pours almost exactly like a cola, with a similar "head" - aroma of roastiness and a slight doughy character - medium sweet with a slight dryness that tries to cut it, and almost does - I wouldn’t be able to pick this out in a croud.

The bottle on this beer doesn’t really go out of it’s way to tell you what is in store. Pours like a Stout, black with a lasting compact light brown head and nice foamy lacing. The aroma is Stout-ish as well - Coffee, chocolate and malt. The body and flavor finally peg this as a Porter. Medium-bodied and somewhat smooth, with a sweet maple/molasses flavor that unfortunately does not hold up for very long. Some of the flavors promised in the aroma fail to show up with any force in the flavor too. Some coffee, but mostly sweetness and milk. The finish is very lightly hopped with a touch of milk chocolate. If the beer could live up to the promise of the aroma and first taste it would be really good. As it stands though it doesn’t deliver fully.

2005 22oz bottle. Found this single bottle sitting out of place in the store with no others to be found (Downtown Liquors). Taking it home and drinking it immediately, I was not expecting too much, as I have been very underwhelmed by a vast majority of Weyerbachers beers, finding them very filtered tasting, (poor mouthfeel, quick finish, slight wateriness, poor aging candidates) and somewhat lacking flavor wise. Well this one certainly went against the grain in my book. A vigorous pour revealed tons of lightly creamy, light-tan head, very well retained. Deep black body appears to be opaque, though it is hard to believe this is the case, having found no sediment whatsoever on the bottom. Little to no lacing seems to support the filtered theory. Aroma wise, the molasses can be noted, along with a standard American porter-like roastiness. Light lactic/milk-chocolate notes and an odd, but not unpleasant bananas foster note (must be oats, I always think oats smell like that). The body is medium with a bit of loosening on the end, though nowhere near any of the waterienss I have found from some of Weyerbacher’s other beers. A touch overcarbonated as well (force carbonated), but not severely so. The flavor really takes the show, however (IMO). Just a smooth, even debittered black malt, lightly sweet molasses, a touch of salty toffee and tons of milk-chocolate. Finishes roasty and only lightly hopped, with the 7% abv nowhere to be found. The balance of flavors in this is fantastic and really makes up for some lesser qualities in aroma and body. Though the malts could be fatter, the body more substantial, this was a highly enjoyable drink for me and I’m glad I tried it.