Dark Horse Brewing Co. Fore Smoked Stout

Fore Smoked Stout

 

Dark Horse Brewing Co. in Marshall, Michigan, United States 🇺🇸

  Stout - Smoked Rotating
Score
7.48
ABV: 7.0% IBU: 22 Ticks: 157
Number four in our stout series, this beer is brewed with all malted barley and hardwood smoked malt. Aromas of smoked chocolate and coffee leave way to a full-bodied stout with a smokey finish. Fore is a house favorite among our brewers.
 

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7.6
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

12 oz bottle from the Hwy 2 road trip. Aroma is chocolate, coffee, licorice, molasses; smoke presence is light to medium. Pours inky black with a thin dark tan head that reduces into a collar somewhat quick. Taste is bitter with flavors matching the aroma. The whiff of smoke I detected when I first poured the beer is even less there now. I'm not one for subtlety when it comes to smoked beer. If you're going to brew a smoked beer, by all means go all in. I was hoping for a campfire in a glass, but this is pretty mild. Even so, it's still a good beer, just not quite what I was looking for.

Tried from Bottle on 08 Sep 2017 at 22:41


7.8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

Smoked stout from Dark Horse, older bottle from Biergenot but I cannot be bothered by its age as heavy stouts / porters in general and smoked ones in particular tend to keep very well... Irregular, deep brownish beige, moussy head lacing in ’dots’, dissolving almost instantly in the middle but retaining well around the edges with some thin patches of greyish foam in the middle, atop a black beer with hazy chestnut brown edges. Aroma is indeed smoky but quite roasted as well, with hints of charcoal (not much ’smoked bacon’ though), a lot of caramel, ’fondant’ chocolate, cold black coffee and even coffee liqueur, dried sage, bayleaf, leather, burnt toast, ’pralines’, candied fig, kahlua, burnt barbecued meat without the meat, Cuban cigars, hazelnut oil, liquorish, salmiak, roasted peanuts, butterscotch, iron-like clotted blood, hint of black cherry juice and only the faintest hint of - in this case - very elegant, very old madera-like oxidation. Dried fruits in the onset, some very subdued fig and raisin sweetishness with a ’dimly’ sourish edge and light umami accents of roast beef and - far away - dried porcini, altogether very clean and to the point, softly carbonated with a slick, smooth, oily mouthfeel, with something very vaguely metallic on its edges. The sourish roasted barley persists through a middle phase of nutty and very toasted ’black’ maltiness which gains a coffeeish roasted bitter character before the finish, with those dried fruit aspects on top; ends bitter and a tad ashy with that smoked bacon-like factor woven into it, but nothing is overdone here, this beer keeps itself together perfectly till the last drop. I get a very, very faint hint of retronasal oxidation, in this case only adding some complexity; finishes with ongoing roasted and mildly smoked maltiness, peppery hop bitterness and a faint afterglow of warming, gin-like alcohol which does not otherwise interfere with any of the aforementioned flavours. Roasted, coffeeish but also more gentle, lovely bitter chocolate bitterness is the lasting impression after swallowing, as the smoke thing has already faded at that point. Very nice, gracious example of a smoked stout; ever since Alaskan started its famed Smoked Porter, it is usually porters who get the smoky treatment, but this surely qualifies as a stout, with the black roasted bitterness remaining the prime factor in the overall profile of the beer and the smokiness having been added as an extra touch, presenting itself stronger in the nose and retronasally than in the actual flavour, though the Rauchbier association is always there from the first sip to the last. Not too complex but technically very well done, going straight to its own goal without further ado, in an elegant, clean and very well-balanced manner. Very nice beer in its specific context and its age - I’m roughly guessing a few years - has indeed been of practically no influence, apart from this very slight background hint of maderisation, which only made this more beautiful. Highly recommended to those who are into smoked porters, even though this is indeed a stout in its general make-up.

Tried from Bottle on 03 Jun 2017 at 11:34


8.2
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

12 ounce bottle. Dark, opaque black color. Small dense creamy tan head. Big, rich roasted malt nose with notes of cocoa and smoke. Flavor is rich and malty with subtle smoky, chocolaty, licorice notes. Flavor improves as it warms. Delicious and creamy, with a bittersweet cocoa character. Outstanding!

Tried from Bottle on 14 Oct 2016 at 21:18


7
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

So many porters include smoke, but I haven’t seen too many stouts. This isn’t bad. Pours a deep, dark black, with an almost purpleish head. Aroma of smoke, roasted grain, chocolate, coffee. Flavor is also mainly smoke (almost tastes like smoked meat), along with some sweetness, chocolate, licorice, coffee. etc.

Tried on 20 Feb 2016 at 16:50


7.4
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle. Black pour with a beige head. Aromas of licorice, burnt sugar, toffee. Flavours of raisin, coffee, smoke,. Very smooth.

Tried from Bottle on 18 Feb 2016 at 16:14


7.1
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

At a tasting, thanks, very little head, opaque black color, aroma of chocolate cake, wood and dark bread in the back, flavor of dark chocolate, coal and dark bread in the back, pleasant light bitterness. Nice though not really smokey.

Tried on 16 Feb 2016 at 06:54


7.5
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Bottle at home. Pours black with a tan head. Roast malts aroma, tastes the smoke but not too overpowering, little sweetness in there from a hint of dried fruits. Nice balance. Decent smoked beer.

Tried from Bottle on 12 Jan 2016 at 17:31


8.1
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle, 0.355l. Pours pitch black wit thin creamy brown head and sparkling appearance. Aroma of roasted malt, smoke, leather, meat and licorice. Taste starts with rich roasted and smoked malt, follows by sweet chocolate, mild licorice and light alcohol note mouthfeel is warming and spicy, while finish is mild bitter. Full body, creamy texture and lively lingering carbonation. A bit too sweet and not enough distinct smoke in the taste...

Tried from Bottle on 22 Nov 2015 at 01:58


7.5
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Botella en casa de @Vivalabirra, Oviedo. Color negro espuma beige. Aromas dulces, sabor maltoso toques lácticos.¿ahumado?Cuerpo denso.

Tried on 18 Sep 2015 at 15:33


7
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Tap during RBESG2015, Day 3, Copenhagen - black pour with tan head. Aroma and taste is medium roasty malty with some chocolate and treacle notes, some subtle smoke nuances, not bad.

Tried from Draft on 04 Sep 2015 at 09:22