Black Damnation XI - Special K (Kay)
De Struise Brouwers in Oostvleteren, West Flanders, Belgium 🇧🇪
Collab with: The Portsmouth BreweryStout - Imperial Regular Out of Production
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Score
7.69
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Uh-oh, looks like we did it again. This big mother of a beer clocks in at 22% ABV and is nothing short of a flavor explosion. Special Kay is an unholy collab between Struise and Portsmouth Brewing company, well known for making one of the best stouts in the United States.
We first blended Portsmouth's Kate the Great imperial stout with our Black Albert. We then fractionally ice-distilled it over 20 days and ended up at a temperature of -15°C. The result is a white-knuckle thrill ride for your tastebuds: bitter, sweet and super intense. It was only made once, so get your hands on a bottle while you still might have a chance!
We first blended Portsmouth's Kate the Great imperial stout with our Black Albert. We then fractionally ice-distilled it over 20 days and ended up at a temperature of -15°C. The result is a white-knuckle thrill ride for your tastebuds: bitter, sweet and super intense. It was only made once, so get your hands on a bottle while you still might have a chance!
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7.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
330mL bottle, pours black with almost no head. Aroma is quite intense, with a hot, almost perfumey character, medium roast, a touch of molasses, and a touch of port. Flavour is extremely intense, with major port barrel presence, medium roast, booze, and a touch of cocoa. Shows every last percent of this.
Tried
from Bottle
from
De Struise Beershop
on 31 Aug 2025
at 05:26
7/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 7
Overall 7
Dark brown. No head. Aroma is boozy, phenolic, headsy. On the palate, the port barrel shows through a bit, then there's lots of alcohol, a bit of dark sugars, toffee sort of thing. Raisiny and boozy.
Tried
on 31 Aug 2025
at 05:20
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Poured from 330mL bottle (vintage: 18/12/2019; bb 22/03/2022+5yrs). Dark brown with very minimal off white head. Dark fruit, boozy, a bit higher abv than necessary, still enjoyable sipper.
Tried
from Bottle
on 31 Aug 2025
at 05:19
7.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7.5
Flavor 8
Texture 7
Overall 7.5
330mL bottle. Pours black with no head. Subdued roast, port barrels, and some booze on the nose. Flavour is has a roasty base, though it's definitely in the background with a lot of booze and port barrels on top. Nice complexity, good base, and very boozy. While it is very nice, it is definitely on the brutal side.
Tried
from Bottle
on 31 Aug 2025
at 01:30
7/10
2022 versioon. Magus, mõru, alks, šokolaad, röstine, kerge münt, linnaseline. Selle abv kohta väga ok.
Tried
from Bottle
on 17 Jul 2025
at 00:59
8.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Black with a brown head - Malt aroma with some dark fruity tones - Malt body with dark fruity flavours as well - Dark malt flavours with fruity tones and some alcohol sting goes into the finish - This was real good
Tried
on 01 Feb 2025
at 10:51
6.5/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 20 Sep 2023
at 10:12
8/10
From Backlog. Taster at MBCC 22, Copenhagen. Dark brown with beige head. Malts, Caramel, toffee, peppers, a boozy sting, but hides The alcohol well.
Tried
on 07 Jan 2023
at 11:23
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Bottle from Willems Grobbendonk. 33cl Special Kay vintage 18/12/2019. Color: Black, no head. Aroma: Roasted malt, vinuous. Boozy. Taste: Roasted malt, licorice, subtle mocha notes, dark dried fruit, quite strong Port and some oak wood. Very boozy. Warming and oily mouthfeel. Full body, low carbonation. Medium sweet, moderate bitterness. Dry-ish finish. Super strong slow sipper.
Tried
from Bottle
on 25 Oct 2022
at 19:52
7.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
How: Draught.
Where: MBCC 2022.
Appearance: Black colour with a beige head.
Aroma: Roasted malt, chocolate, liquorice, port, dried fruit.
Body: Full body, low carbonation.
Flavour: Roasted malt, chocolate, liquorice, port, dried fruit.
Where: MBCC 2022.
Appearance: Black colour with a beige head.
Aroma: Roasted malt, chocolate, liquorice, port, dried fruit.
Body: Full body, low carbonation.
Flavour: Roasted malt, chocolate, liquorice, port, dried fruit.
Tried
from Draft
on 14 Sep 2022
at 09:46