6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Dark., muddy brown. Big malt aroma – caramel & Tootsie Rolls. Strong alcohol presence. This is a mean mother – though it’s strange that while the caramel doesn’t balance out the alcohol at all, it does meld with it to create a unique effect on the palate. Slightly salty. Still, something to temper the heat would have been better – it hit my stomach like St. Ides.
Tried
on 28 Jul 2003
at 15:46
7/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Pours like molasses or petroleum with a brown head. Aroma is roasted malts, and the flavor is likewise heavy on roasted, burnt, smoked notes, with a hint of sweetness. The body was a bit on the thin side. The brewer's other stouts (and Black Bier porter) have the same smoked flavor as this beer does.
Tried
on 27 Jul 2003
at 11:59
8.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Fits nicely with the Dark Horse stout line. I remember enjoying this one in my undergrad days, and finding a 6-pack (finally) was a pleasant surprise. Pours molasses-dark, with a tan/brown head. Aroma is potent roasted chocolate with an essence of malt sugars. Likewise, the flavor is of rich roasted chocolate, coffee, black licorice, and burnt slightly sweet malts. Finishes dry. A real winner. The black licorice and molasses notes are characteristic of the Dark Horse dark beers. Get your hands on them if you can. I especially recommend this one to fans of Bells Kalamazoo Stout. I'll have to pick up that Smoked Stout I left in the store...
Tried
from Can
on 20 Jul 2003
at 18:21
5.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 4
Overall 6.5
Pours a ruddy orange, loaded with sediment, topped by a creamy light tan head. Aroma is floral, spicy hops. The flavor is a medley of hops flavors, with little in the way of malt balance. In fact, this is giving my mouth a muddy feel after a few sips. I prefer the darker styles by this brewery.
Tried
on 16 Jul 2003
at 17:16
5.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
A most interesting pour! The body is peach-colored, cloudy, and full of particulates. Pop-like fizzy carbonation quickly subsides, leaving no head. Aroma is slight and sweet, and the flavor is raspberry (you guessed it) and slight tang, with little complexity. A pleasant enough sip, designed (consciously or not) for the fan of "Clearly Canadian" soft drinks. Otherwise, not very heavy on the "beer."
Tried
from Can
on 29 Jun 2003
at 20:11
6.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
An especially dark porter with strong emphasis on roasted malts, chocolate bitterness, and just a hint of fruitiness/sweetness in the body. Certainly a competent example of a crowded, somewhat flabby style.
Tried
on 27 Jun 2003
at 19:27
6.2/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
An average all-around brown ale. Pours dark brown with a thin tan head. Nutty, malty aroma and flavor with slight hopping. Not on par with the exquisite Bells Best Brown, but a decent alternate that can be found in beer stores and the occasional grocery store in south-central Michigan.
Tried
from Can
on 27 Jun 2003
at 18:55
7.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
(Also known as "One")Strong roasted aroma emanates from another dark, motor-oil like body. Flavor is smooth, somewhat dry, dominated by roasted malts and with a slightly bitter aftertaste. Not as interesting as the Cream Stout, but still solid.
Tried
on 27 Jun 2003
at 09:48
6.2/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
Pours fairly dark for a witbier (light amber) with a white head. Spicy aroma gives way to wheat, coriander, cloves, and lemon-pepper flavors. The body is semi-sour with a bitter aftertaste. A different interpretation of a witbier, lurking close to being an American wheat.
Tried
from Can
on 25 Jun 2003
at 08:57
7.8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
I hadn't sipped a Dark Horse brew since my days at Albion College, which is ten minutes from this small Marshall brewery. I was very happy to find several recently arrived Dark Horse varieties at a nice beer/liquor establishment in Grand Rapids, most of which I have not tasted. But enough of my reminiscing. This is a solid, unique stout. The very dark brown body is topped with a dark tan/light brown lasting head. The aroma had me guessing, but I can see how it can be termed anise-like. Definitely a strong roasted, almost smoked aspect as well (ratebeer is giving me a new positive opinion of sentence fragments). Flavor is sweet as per style, but strong roasted, licorice, and chocolate flavors compete for attention. The flavors do tend to compete, rather than interact, and a slightly stronger hops component would serve to balance the flavor. Still, this Dark Horse brew manages to step outside the halls of convention, reminding me why I continue to explore the world of ale. Recommended to fans of Arcadia's Imperial Stout.
Tried
from Can
on 24 Jun 2003
at 19:28