Bottle, 11C. Left lots of gunge in the bottle. Black with a coat of tan head that doesn’t last. Aroma of roasted malt, chocolate , coffee, star anise, roasted seaweed. A little whiff of unintegrated alcohol. Silky texture. Taste has bitter chocolate, the promised hint of chile (like dry-roasted Sri Lankan ones, not fruity at all) slightly astringent coffee. Dry finish is ashy and quite bitter, with astringent and salty notes. Not what I expected - it’s quite severe and there’s no cuddly sweetness to it, the depth is all underneath. Reminds me of some De Molen beers. Good characterful stuff.

Pours hazy brown with a large, fading head.Nose shows chocolate, some harsh alcohol, a fair bit of roasted malt and a soapy character.Flavours follow along the same lines; chocolate, plain roasted malt, hot alcohol.Could use more carbonation.A couple of issues with this one.