Syrupy, little sweetness, not a ton of coffee.
EvNa (6176) reviewed Barrelborn from Ritual LAB: Brewing & Growing 4 months ago
Appearance - 9 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 9 | Overall - 9.5
Bottle. Color: Black, very thin brown head. Aroma: Fruity Cognac, roasted malt, hints of coffee and Bourbon. Taste: Following the atoma. Fruity, grapes, earthy, roasted malt, subtle Bourbon and hints of coffee and liquorice. Boozy notes. Medium sweet, moderate bitterness. Oily and sticky mouthfeel. Dry-ish finish. Full body, below average carbonation. Very nice slow sipper, better than the coffee edition.
Appearance - 9 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 8.5 | Texture - 9 | Overall - 8
Bottle. Color: Black, thin brown head. Aroma: Blend of roasted malt, coffee, notes of fruity Cognac and sweetish Bourbon. Taste: Dense, oily and smooth mouthfeel. Mix of coffee, roasted malt, fruity Cognac and sweetish Bourbon notes. Sweetish but not too sweet. Dry bittery finish. Full body, below average carbonation. Very well balanced, nice complexity. Great slow sipper.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6
12 oz. bottle, pours black with a small tan head. Aroma has soft meaty malt, gentle oak barrels that don’t quite come across as bourbon, and some feint molasses. Flavour is full of chocolate syrup, butterscotch, graham cracker, and a touch of bourbon. Too much chocolate syrup, not enough malt depth, and barrels that don’t really strike the right notes. Not bad, but this doesn’t really work for me.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6.5 | Flavor - 6.5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5
330mL bottle. Pours nearly black with no head. Graham crackers, light chocolate, and some bourbon on the nose. Flavour has chocolate syrup, graham crackers, dusty coffee, and a sweet malt profile that I tend to find in European imperial stouts. Barely any barrel character. Comes off a bit hamfisted.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
Bottle shared thanks to Alexander. Very very dark brown with no head. Huge roast, coffee, dark chocolate, thick rum, dry chocolate beans, tar, earthy. Over medium sweet, medium bitter. Almost full bodied, dry boozy rum finish.
Fin (18516) reviewed Papanero from Ritual LAB: Brewing & Growing 7 months ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Bottle that I picked up from Drankgigant.nl webshop, Vlissingen, Netherlands and consumed in the company of Jude and Baz at Camping Leutasch, Austria, Friday 15th August 2025, we had a Thomasina Miers Chilli-con-Carne, Spicy Deep Fried Pineapple, Mexican Roasted Courgettes and Mexican Rice. Pours shark eye black with a light beige, actually let's go with cappuccino coloured head of foam. Roasty with intense coffee notes, also molasses and licorice, in fact there's lots of liquorice. The flavour also following a similar trajectory. Nice mouthfeel, body smooth and full. Well balanced but a bit of a one trick pony.
Appearance - 9 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Bottle. Phantom Spirits Rum. Color: Black, thin dark brown head. Aroma: Roasted malt, earthy, Rum. Taste: Earthy, smooth mouthfeel, boozy notes, roasted malt, Rum, sweet notes, toffee, liquorice, some coffee. Full body, low carbonation. Ovet medium sweet, moderate to over moderate bitterness. Nice slow sipper.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
330ml can. Minimally milky, yellow-ish, golden colour with small to average, frothy to creamy, half-way lasting, minimally lacing, white head. Piney and slightly citrusy fruity, minimally grassy, hoppy aroma, pale malty background, hints of lemon, woody pineapple. Taste is piney, resinous and slightly citrusy fruity, minimally grassy hoppy, minimalyl spicy, pale malty basis with a touch of salty cracker and low residual sweetness, notes of lemon, some woody pineapple, resin, a touch of tangerine; lingering, moderately bitter hoppy finish.
Oily texture, smooth, soft and minimally greasy, simultaneously minimally dry palate, fine, dense, mildly prickly carbonation.
Oily and resinous, not overly fruity, good mouthfeel - pretty decent.
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7
330ml can. Hazy, orange golden colour with average, frothy to creamy, half-way lasting, minimally lacing, white head. Citrusy fruity, hoppy aroma, oaty and wheaty malty background, notes of grapefruit and orange. Taste is citrusy fruity hoppy, oaty and wheaty malty basis with some residual sweetness, notes of grapefruit, some orange, mild zesty bitterness.
Creamy-watery texture, smooth and soft, simultaneously minimally dry palate, medium to fine, mildly prickly carbonation.
Fairly juicy, almost solely grapefruit flavours, therefore a tad monotonous - decent.