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Tres Blueberry Stout
Dark Horse Brewing Company
- From:
- Dark Horse Brewing Company
- Michigan, United States
- Style:
- American Stout
Ranked #101 - ABV:
- 7.5%
- Score:
- 89
Ranked #11,990 - Avg:
- 3.97 | pDev: 10.33%
- Reviews:
- 666
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Sep 03, 2023
- Added:
- Sep 24, 2002
- Wants:
- 147
- Gots:
- 210
A full bodied stout made with all malted barley and blueberry. Flavors of chocolate, roast malt and light blueberry make up the palate with lots of fruity blueberry aroma.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by coldmeat23:
Reviewed by coldmeat23 from Oklahoma
4.65/5 rDev +17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
4.65/5 rDev +17.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
GLASS: Dogfish Head Pint Glass
TEMP: Cellared @ approx 45 degrees
Appears to be solid black. If you pay attention as it pours though, it has a dark red, almost purple color to it. I can't reproduce this in the glass. Two-finger head of creamy, dark brown foam. Retention is just going on and on and on. Lacing is like a curtain, but it's pretty slippery, so it doesn't really last long.
Good lord, that's a wonderful nose! It's exactly what it says it is, but so much more than I had expected. Smells like a cup of dark roast coffee and a fresh made blueberry muffin. Seriously. I pick up mild malt notes and a very light hint of chocolate.
This nose is very simple, but oh so deliciously inviting.
Who would have thought that blueberries would work so well with a nice stout? This is tasty!
Full of big, dark roasted coffee presence. Nice notes of dark chocolates, which are much more prevelant than in the nose. Good roasted maltiness. These characteristics alone would make a nice, solid stout. Then they went and loaded it with the flavor of blueberries that just dances around with all of these other flavors. All of the flavors work very well together and nobody really overpowers anybody else. The blueberries do get to shine in the finish, though, leaving a nice, sweet taste to remember this one by.
Excellently done, Dark Horse!
On the lower end of full-bodied. Nicely smooth and slightly creamy. Would benefit from a touch more creaminess and body. Just a little tweaking of the carbonation would probably accomplish this.
This is a very drinkable brew, for any time of year. This is number three, out of five, in the DH stout series, and I'm drinking them in order. That means that I still have two more to go, but right now, for me, this is the standout of the series. The other two have got their work cut out for them.
I wish I had more of this one, instead of just the one bottle. DH should really think about making this a regular release.
May 14, 2009TEMP: Cellared @ approx 45 degrees
Appears to be solid black. If you pay attention as it pours though, it has a dark red, almost purple color to it. I can't reproduce this in the glass. Two-finger head of creamy, dark brown foam. Retention is just going on and on and on. Lacing is like a curtain, but it's pretty slippery, so it doesn't really last long.
Good lord, that's a wonderful nose! It's exactly what it says it is, but so much more than I had expected. Smells like a cup of dark roast coffee and a fresh made blueberry muffin. Seriously. I pick up mild malt notes and a very light hint of chocolate.
This nose is very simple, but oh so deliciously inviting.
Who would have thought that blueberries would work so well with a nice stout? This is tasty!
Full of big, dark roasted coffee presence. Nice notes of dark chocolates, which are much more prevelant than in the nose. Good roasted maltiness. These characteristics alone would make a nice, solid stout. Then they went and loaded it with the flavor of blueberries that just dances around with all of these other flavors. All of the flavors work very well together and nobody really overpowers anybody else. The blueberries do get to shine in the finish, though, leaving a nice, sweet taste to remember this one by.
Excellently done, Dark Horse!
On the lower end of full-bodied. Nicely smooth and slightly creamy. Would benefit from a touch more creaminess and body. Just a little tweaking of the carbonation would probably accomplish this.
This is a very drinkable brew, for any time of year. This is number three, out of five, in the DH stout series, and I'm drinking them in order. That means that I still have two more to go, but right now, for me, this is the standout of the series. The other two have got their work cut out for them.
I wish I had more of this one, instead of just the one bottle. DH should really think about making this a regular release.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by Roguer from Connecticut
3.75/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.75/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Very good head production and retention.
Blueberry blends very interestingly with the roasty malt base. I'd call it complementary, but in a way, the former almost amplifies the latter in a sharp manner, giving an impression of strong, heavy bitterness. Additional aroma notes of toast, molasses, licorice, and prune.
A touch thin on the palate; perhaps expected at "only" 7.5% ABV.
Flavor follows the nose. This is one roasty beer, very dark and quite bitter. The blueberries are surprisingly restrained, but they do add a sharpness to the proceedings. Toast, moderate char, chocolate, caramel, cola, prune, blueberry.
Overall, I'm not sure this is a combination that works for me. Blueberries in a stout, when I've found myself surprised and enjoying the experience, seem to work best with a rich, at least modestly sweet malt base, not an RIS-style approach. Blueberries themselves aren't the sweetest, richest fruit, and that sharpness is simply amplified here in a way that isn't particularly stout-like.
Sep 03, 2023Blueberry blends very interestingly with the roasty malt base. I'd call it complementary, but in a way, the former almost amplifies the latter in a sharp manner, giving an impression of strong, heavy bitterness. Additional aroma notes of toast, molasses, licorice, and prune.
A touch thin on the palate; perhaps expected at "only" 7.5% ABV.
Flavor follows the nose. This is one roasty beer, very dark and quite bitter. The blueberries are surprisingly restrained, but they do add a sharpness to the proceedings. Toast, moderate char, chocolate, caramel, cola, prune, blueberry.
Overall, I'm not sure this is a combination that works for me. Blueberries in a stout, when I've found myself surprised and enjoying the experience, seem to work best with a rich, at least modestly sweet malt base, not an RIS-style approach. Blueberries themselves aren't the sweetest, richest fruit, and that sharpness is simply amplified here in a way that isn't particularly stout-like.
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway
3.99/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.99/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Oct. 2014: On tap at Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. Pitch black colour, moderate tan head. Aroma of blueberries, chocolate, vanilla, mild coffee and moderately roasted malts. Pleasant flavour of roasted malts, coffee, dark chocolate and blueberries, a slight fruity acidity, dry finish with moderate hops. Very enjoyable.
Dec 15, 2022Reviewed by GuyFawkes from Illinois
4.25/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.25/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bottled 12/10/14; drank 7/24/15 (after a VERY rough aftgernoon) @ the Yarchives.
Black/brown appearance.
A rough pour yielded a big dark khaki head; almost no lace.
Blueberry & raw oat notes in the nose. 1
Medium thick mouthfeel.
Blueberry & faint milk chocolate flavors up front; raw oat notes on the finish. Blueberry sweetness settled on my lips over the course of the session.
This tasted great on a cool summer night.
Nov 06, 2019Black/brown appearance.
A rough pour yielded a big dark khaki head; almost no lace.
Blueberry & raw oat notes in the nose. 1
Medium thick mouthfeel.
Blueberry & faint milk chocolate flavors up front; raw oat notes on the finish. Blueberry sweetness settled on my lips over the course of the session.
This tasted great on a cool summer night.
Reviewed by Jeffo from Netherlands
3.42/5 rDev -13.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
3.42/5 rDev -13.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Got this one from the Duvel guy in Utrecht. Cheers!
From a bottle into a snifter
APPEARANCE: Murky dark brown pour yields a three finger, medium looking, crackly, slightly foamy, light tan head with decent retention. Black body with medium levels of carbonation evident. Foamy head recedes to a full cap. A ring remains but leaves no real lacing down the glass.
SMELL: Some definite blueberries on the nose, with some roasted malts, milk chocolate, notes of licorice and hints of tobacco in there. The blueberries come through rather nicely here.
TASTE: Roasted flavors with milk chocolate and some sweet blueberry character up front. A bigger finish of milk chocolate, roasted flavors, licorice, tobacco, as well as some light sourness from the blueberries. A bold and lingering finish with roasted chocolate, tobacco, some hop bitterness and some hints of sweet-sour blueberries as well.
PALATE: Medium body and slightly higher levels of carbonation. A little foamy on the palate, a bit lighter, goes down fine and finishes a bit dry for the style. Some bitterness lingers.
OVERALL: This is okay. The look is a little mundane and the feel a little foamy and airy for the style, but the base stout is enjoyable and the blueberries add an element of fun to the mix.
Feb 22, 2019From a bottle into a snifter
APPEARANCE: Murky dark brown pour yields a three finger, medium looking, crackly, slightly foamy, light tan head with decent retention. Black body with medium levels of carbonation evident. Foamy head recedes to a full cap. A ring remains but leaves no real lacing down the glass.
SMELL: Some definite blueberries on the nose, with some roasted malts, milk chocolate, notes of licorice and hints of tobacco in there. The blueberries come through rather nicely here.
TASTE: Roasted flavors with milk chocolate and some sweet blueberry character up front. A bigger finish of milk chocolate, roasted flavors, licorice, tobacco, as well as some light sourness from the blueberries. A bold and lingering finish with roasted chocolate, tobacco, some hop bitterness and some hints of sweet-sour blueberries as well.
PALATE: Medium body and slightly higher levels of carbonation. A little foamy on the palate, a bit lighter, goes down fine and finishes a bit dry for the style. Some bitterness lingers.
OVERALL: This is okay. The look is a little mundane and the feel a little foamy and airy for the style, but the base stout is enjoyable and the blueberries add an element of fun to the mix.
Reviewed by jjamadorphd from Florida
3.29/5 rDev -17.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3
3.29/5 rDev -17.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3
By far the strangest stout I have had to date - definitely not what I was expecting given the name of the brew...
The thing is called 'Tres Blueberry Stout', but it is anything but blueberry. The smell is blueberry, for sure, mixed in with a hint of dark roasted coffee, but that's all I can taste - a black coffee beer on black coffee-steroids. It certainly looked good when poured out - all pitch black with dark tan head and the mouthfeel was solid enough, but when I'm expecting blueberry and I can taste is coffee - well, then something is amiss.
If you like coffee, and you like your coffee black and strong - I highly suggest this brew. Otherwise, if you'e feeling like a fufu beer and reach for this...you've been warned.
Feb 18, 2019The thing is called 'Tres Blueberry Stout', but it is anything but blueberry. The smell is blueberry, for sure, mixed in with a hint of dark roasted coffee, but that's all I can taste - a black coffee beer on black coffee-steroids. It certainly looked good when poured out - all pitch black with dark tan head and the mouthfeel was solid enough, but when I'm expecting blueberry and I can taste is coffee - well, then something is amiss.
If you like coffee, and you like your coffee black and strong - I highly suggest this brew. Otherwise, if you'e feeling like a fufu beer and reach for this...you've been warned.
Reviewed by Tone from Missouri
3.72/5 rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
3.72/5 rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
Pours a black color. 1/2 inch head of a brown color. Great retention and decent lacing. Smells of blueberry, sweet malt, and slight roasted malt. Fits the style of an American Stout. Mouth feel is sharp and clean, with an average carbonation level. There is a roasted malt bitterness. Tastes of roasted malt, blueberry, sweet malt, and a hint of alcohol. Overall, too bitter, good appearance, and otherwise average.
Dec 09, 2018Reviewed by bl00 from Pennsylvania
4.08/5 rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
4.08/5 rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Pours a deep black with mocha head
Berry on the nose, followed by dark chocolate and coffee
Taste is chocolate, berry, coffee on the back end intermingles with some berry and grape notes
Mouthfeel is medium, lively carbonation for a stout. Finish is drier.
Overall, this is very tasty. Fruited stouts can be hit or miss for me, these flavors taste natural and are well balanced.
Apr 09, 2018Berry on the nose, followed by dark chocolate and coffee
Taste is chocolate, berry, coffee on the back end intermingles with some berry and grape notes
Mouthfeel is medium, lively carbonation for a stout. Finish is drier.
Overall, this is very tasty. Fruited stouts can be hit or miss for me, these flavors taste natural and are well balanced.
Tres Blueberry Stout from Dark Horse Brewing Company
Beer rating:
89 out of
100 with
1776 ratings
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