334ml bottle. Pours a very dark brown with a thin head. Aroma has raisin and mild coffee notes. Taste is subtle, some coffee and raisin with a little roast malt as well.

Brown,small beige head.Salty malt nose.Initial burst of sweetness.metallic tones.Mellow toasty malt profile. Very drinkable

Not bad for a Japanese beer. Asahi’s attempt at black leaves a lot to be desired in the dark beer category though. Only a touch of bitterness and no real character beyond just plain ’bitter’. One of the best things to drink in your average 7-11 in Taiwan or Japan, although I’ll take kirin dark over it if I can find the stuff.

11.2 oz. bottle, pours dark brown with a reddish tinge and a beige head. Aroma of light roasted malts, nuts and light fruits. Flavour of toasted malts, nuts and a slightly fruity finish. Quite decent.

[330ml bottle from Waitrose, Tilehurst] Drinking this feeling sorrow for the all the people caught up in the Japanese earthquake. It’s dark brown, moderate beige head, moderate fizz. Smells of camp coffee and - yep, no doubt about it, very distinctly of dark rum & coke. Tastes the same as the aroma, but a little more watered down. Plenty of malt and some molasses in there too and (unfortunately) a hint of sulphur. Defintely sweet, but with a dry finish. A distinctive and very unusual beer - I like dark rum & coke, so quite enjoyed this, but how I’m hoping that the nukes are contained in Japan.

Bottle from Hi Time. Pours black with a 3 finger fizzy/creamy tan head. Aromas of dark malt, and a little dark fruit. Med body til the fizz goes. Flavor is smooth burnt malt. There’s just a little bitter. Drinks very nicely. The burnt malt is not at all harsh.

Bottle. Dark brown with small beige head. Flavour is roasted malts, chocolate and caramel.

Rich deep dark brown coloured body with a very thick, dense tan head. Aroma of must, roasted malt, old basements and a lot of brown sugar. Medium to Light-bodied; Strong caramel and nutty flavour with a light maltiness and a touch of brown sugar. Aftertaste is fairly mild with the malt coming through most and a very mild sweetness with almost no complexity. Overall, a decent beer - better than most Japanese offerings, and at least something different. However, compared to what beers you can get elsewhere in the world, it just doesn’t stack up! I sampled this 35 cL can (with an English silver stamp on the side) purchased from CitySuper! Grocery Store at 2 IFC in Hong Kong, SAR for HK$10, best by date of 31 10 10, sampled a few thousand miles away at home in Washington on 08-November-2010.

28th March 2006
Warning! Early amateur rating! Nice clean dark lager. Dry finish. No huge depth of flavour but hits the spot.

334ml bottle from Waitrose, Cambridge. Pours a deep mahogany brown with a large loose cream head; the aroma has grassy hops with perhaps a hint of chocolate malts; smooth with a thin body and some caramel malt flavours; then a touch of nuts to the dry finish. Rather insubstantial.