12oz bottle pours out black topped with a small tan ring of a head. Nose is nice chocolate coffee roast malts some rich whiskey barrel notes vanilla spice smoke. Taste is more of the nice roast malts chocolate sweetness the booze barrel notes some light ash.

330 ml bottle into snifter; bottle #26077, bottled in 8/2010. Pours fairly pitch black color with a small dense tan head with good retention, that reduces to a thin lace cap that lingers. Light spotty lacing clings around the glass, with some light streaming carbonation. Aromas of big milk chocolate, cocoa, coffee, toast, toffee, molasses, dark bread, vanilla, oak, raisin, plum, fig, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, and oak/peat earthiness. Incredible complexity and balance of dark/bready malt and whiskey cask notes; with good strength. Taste of big milk chocolate, cocoa, coffee, toast, toffee, dark bread, molasses, vanilla, oak, raisin, plum, fig, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, and roast/peat earthiness. Slight roast/oak bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of milk chocolate, cocoa, coffee, dark bread, vanilla, toffee, oak, dark fruit, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, and oak/peat earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity and balance of dark/bready malt and whiskey cask flavors; with a great roasted bitterness/sweetness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a very smooth, creamy, and lightly bready mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with zero warming present after the finish. Overall this is an outstanding old ale! All around awesome complexity and balance of dark/bready malts and whiskey cask flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the ABV. A highly enjoyable offering.

Bottle at Craig’s. Oh mama! Pours jet black with thin tan head. Aromas of balsamic vinegar, light coffee. Taste is light sour, coffee, dark chocolate. Finishes boozy, nice.

Bottle. Pours black with a finger thick, creamy mocha head. Aroma is burned malts with nice, quite bitter whiffs of burned, as well as oak and tobacco. Quite light body with creamy texture and soft carbonation. Flavour is sweet with burned malts and whisky, as well as coffee and oak giving a long sweetly finish with dark fruits.

Clear black colour, red hue, beige head. Aroma of whisky, caramel, tomato, alcohol, whisky and vanilla. Sweet malty flavour, chocolate, whisky and caramel. Finish chocolate, caramel, cacao and whisky. Great beer which still allows room for the whisky to shine. Nice!
(from 33cL bottle @ post-ZZT VIIIb drink, Oirschot 2013. Thanks a million for sharing, joes!)