Dark Star Brewing Co. Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice

 

Dark Star Brewing Co. in Partridge Green, West Sussex, England ๐Ÿด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ

  Bitter - Ordinary / Best Bitter Regular
Score
6.50
ABV: 4.2% IBU: - Ticks: 19
The rich bronze colour is derived from the mix of Munich, Maris Otter, Crystal and Black malt. Most of the bittering is from Atlas hops while the wonderfully fruity Galena hops are used at the end of the boil for the aroma. A tiny amount of seasonal spices are used for a hint of Christmas, warm fires and good cheer.
 

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6.8/10 โ€” Appearance 6 Aroma 7 Flavor 7 Texture 6 Overall 7
Cask (handpump) @ The Rake, 14 Winchester Walk, London, Greater London England SE1 9AG.Clear medium amber orange colour with a average, frothy to creamy, good lacing, fully lasting, off-white to white head. Aroma is moderate malty, caramel, moderate hoppy, passion fruit, allspice. Flavor is moderate to heavy sweet and bitter with a long duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft to flat. [20101230]
Tried from Cask on 26 Jul 2011 at 11:17

7.9/10 โ€” Appearance 8 Aroma 8 Flavor 7 Texture 8 Overall 8.5
Gravity cask at the Bree Louise. Pours a clear, rich gold with a strong, white head. Aroma is wonderful, at first quite hoppy with strong pine and then spicy with thyme and rosemary. Flavor is lightly sweet with some faint honey and white sugar, and quite bitter with sticky pine and resin. Medium bodied with fine carbonation. Finishes spicy and sticky in the throat, balanced with some slightly bready malts. Great beer. I donโ€™t always enjoy spiced beer but this one is a winner.
Tried from Cask on 21 Feb 2011 at 08:29

6.4/10 โ€” Appearance 6 Aroma 6 Flavor 6 Texture 8 Overall 6.5
Cask-conditioned at the Sussex beer festival, Seven Stars, Bristol 6/1/11. Deep amber with a decent, off-white head. Aroma of sweetish malts and leafy hops, with a whiff of spice. Flavour had nuts, more spice and a dryish, hoppy finish. Good.
Tried from Cask on 07 Jan 2011 at 11:08

8.2/10 โ€” Appearance 8 Aroma 8 Flavor 8 Texture 8 Overall 9
Cask at the Evening Star, Brighton, on 9th December 2009 and again at the Cask Pub & Kitchen, Pimlico, London on 11th December. Both versions clear, copper coloured with slightly yellow white head quickly turning to a peripheral ring. BRIGHTON VERSION Interesting creamy notes, like clotted cream against a rich hoppy and fruity background with just a hint of smokiness. Creamy/buttery note continues to the end alongside the hoppiness in a rich, lengthy and satisfying finish. Good engaging texture. A huge amount going on in the beer. LONDON VERSION Cream notes completely absent allowing the fruit, hop and smoke to flourish and entertain the tastebuds to their full extent. Thus a very "clean" beer, equally enjoyable and indeed preferable to the creamy variety.
Tried from Cask on 12 Dec 2009 at 04:28

6.6/10 โ€” Appearance 8 Aroma 7 Flavor 6 Texture 6 Overall 6.5
Cask Conditioned at Oliver Twist, Stockholm
Amber color. Rich malt and caramel aroma, light biscuits too. Quite good strength, but it tends to be thinner at the end; strong caramel flavor, sweetish in the beginning and drier later. Bold final bitterness. Solid but average Bitter.
Tried from Cask on 02 Mar 2009 at 05:18

6.8/10 โ€” Appearance 8 Aroma 7 Flavor 6 Texture 6 Overall 7
(Cask at Akkurat, Stockholm, 22 Jan 2009) Dark brown colour, almost mahogany. Frothy, beige head. Malty, spicy nose with caramel, dark fruit, ginger and cardamom. Malty, spicy taste with notes of dark fruit, ginger and cardamom. Bittersweet finish with just a tad too much spices. Still a nice one, but wouldnโ€™t suffer from a little more balance. In short: dark fruit and ginger.
Tried from Cask on 25 Jan 2009 at 09:45

7/10 โ€” Appearance 6 Aroma 7 Flavor 7 Texture 6 Overall 8
cask in Stockbridge tap edinburgh ... copper ... big fruity hop nose ... fruity light roast ... juicy malts ... light malt background.
Tried from Cask on 02 Jan 2009 at 11:34

5.2/10 โ€” Appearance 6 Aroma 5 Flavor 5 Texture 6 Overall 5
Cask. Ambery brown colour with small head. Aroma is herbal, nutty and a bit wooden. Flavour is wood, hebs nad some nuttyness as well as some sap. Big dry bitterness in the finish.
Tried from Cask on 30 Dec 2008 at 00:59

6.6/10 โ€” Appearance 6 Aroma 7 Flavor 7 Texture 6 Overall 6.5
Cask handpull at Red Lion, Histon. Copper colour with thin off white head. Ginger/aniseed spicey flavour. Ginger nut biscuity aroma. Fairly solid in mouth and then spicey/earthy finish. Very good. Nice spicey winter beer.
Tried from Cask on 22 Jan 2007 at 07:26