Deep black porter with a dark moka head. Smoked peat and chocolate in aroma. Good chocolate malt with very light smokeyness. A bit thinner then expected but very good. On tap at Mondial 2005.

On draught at the brewpub and at the fest June 2005. Chocolate, caramel brown body, with some darker brown notes mixed in. Opaque/cloudy with a small beige head, rapidly receding to cover then ring. Aroma smells of smoked malt and more specifically, woody, oily, dry, charred smoked malt, with less salty, beef and pork smoke character than your typical Schlennie offering. Bits of chocolate and coffee break in, with a bit of molasses or lightly sweet brown-sugar. Flavor is sweet and smokey, like maple cured turkey bacon, wet coffee rinds, chocolate and dry pine wood. Honey sweet malt sugariness on the end, with an easygoing milk chocolatiness and a touch of drying roast. Watery consistency to the texture with the body seemingly broken up by unusually large bubbles, too watery ultimately. Low carbonation. Still, the fact that they smoked their own malt really impresses me. Hard to give a palate score on this for me, a perfect balance for the flavor, in my mind, but an overly watery consistency.

Sample at the Mondiale 2005: Poured a pitch black color ale with a huge dark beige head with good retention. Aroma is dominated by the smoke malt (smoke by the brewer himself) and even thought the smoke is clearly present, it is not as strong as Schlenkerla. Taste is quite enjoyable with porter like roastiness and bitterness mixing quite well with the smoke malt. Good stuff!!!