Rail, La Spar
Dark Horse Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

$1.99 for a 12oz at BevCo. Brewed with sasparilla root and vanilla beans. 8.5% ABV.

Pours out to a limpid jet black despite a vigorous pour, minimal to absent very dark brown head, low carbonation. The nose is quite nice, tons of black walnut, chalk, smooth roast character, french roast, bitter chocolate. The mouthfeel is very very smooth, slick, oily, dense bodied. The taste is great. Lots of black walnut, malt forward, no astringency but plenty of roast, acidity is well restrained, plenty of herbal hops but moderate bitterness, supremely balanced. The sasparilla and vanilla are subtle notes in the background of a very well brewed stout. I wouldn't guess that it was brewed with them. Tasters are mentioning overwhelming root beer, but I'm not getting that AT ALL. Not your fathers root beer? Not even remotely close. That's a syrupy sugar bomb. This is a proper stout. It's more akin to their special reserve black beer or plead the 5th.

Dark horse are masters of the stout. This beer is even more evidence of that assertion. Wonderful. Go get some.

Pours opaque black with reddish edges. Brief, thin tan head, leaving a two-bubble-thick ring.

Smells like chocolate cake batter, peat, and char. Not getting any vanilla. I.e, reminiscent of a porter, or a dry Irish stout, with a little less peat.

Taste is black/burnt coffee, bitter chocolate, burnt vanilla , and something that alternates between hints of preserved stone fruits (smooth/sweet) and a light astringency. Assuming that is the sarsaparilla root.

Light, oily, feel, with very fine, lightly-prickly carbonation, that is (unusually!) felt on the initial taste, but not on the finish.

I like it , & hope they brew it again. On first sniff I wasn't impressed, but the taste is better, more, and more complex. Of Dark Horse's stouts, I like this better than all but Plead the Fifth ( & variants).

 

 

Poured from a brown 12 oz. bottle. Has a black color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of smoke, chocolate, a touch of sarsaparilla. Taste is smokey, licorice, sarsaparilla, alcohol is well hidden. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is an enjoyable beer.

**
05/27/17

Bottle to snifter.

LOOK: dark black, thick. Minimal head.

AROMA: touch of root beer, mixed with dark chocolate, vanilla, smoke.

TASTE: licorice, vanilla, toasted malt, then some root beer.

FEEL: thick, low carbonation.


A nice more beerlike option to Not Your Fathers. This is a stout first, with root beer like flavors. Tasty.


**

 

 

 

Brief Review:

O: Is this supposed to be a Root Beer-flavored stout? Not sure what the advantage of adding the sarsaparilla root is here. The vanilla definately dominates the nose. Flavor-wise, not much different from your average vanilla stout. Reminds me off Too Cream a bit. I prefer Too-nilla to both of these, though. This won't blow anyone's socks off, but it's a serviceable flavored stout.

Recommendation: You don't see a lot of mid-ABV stouts these days, so if you're looking for an alternative to all those heavy Imperial Stouts, consider this a good alternative. Otherwise, it's nothing too special.