Diablo Imperial Black IPA
Big Hole Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

Poured from a longneck into a sampler. It takes an aggressive pour to produce about 1/4 inch of a creamy, off-white head. This gradually reduces to a ring around the edge and a little wisp or two in the center. This beer is very dark and will scarcely admit light from a common compact fluorescent bulb. The edges show a little bit of ruddy dark brown with a bit of yellow.

I don't get a lot in the nose except a generic rich, molasses-like malt aroma (but I confess my nose is not that sensitive). The flavor is very malty, with lots of dry but tangy molasses and touches of coffee, dark fruit (prunes, cherrries), and dark bread. A fruity, dank flavor lingers on the palate, which makes it seem maybe a little sweeter than it is, but some earthy bitterness is detectable on the back of the tongue. Alcohol flavors are well-masked but certainly accentuate the fruity flavor-aromas. I don't detect a ton of funkiness or other yeasty characteristics except for maybe a tad of nutty bitterness.

I think I only paid only about 8 bucks for a sixer of this stuff, which is a pretty good deal. Plenty of complex esters suggestive of a good home brew. I don't have much in my tasting experience to compare to this style, other than Chimay, which I have not sampled in awhile, and have not reviewed here. My palate says the beer could use a maybe use a tad more bitterness and maybe even some funkiness to balance the malt.

Updated June 2014- I've bought a six pack or two of this since it was on sale at a bargain price. I've come to appreciate the malt characteristics more and have upgraded the overall marks without substantially altering the narrative. A little more funk would be welcome, but please don't turn this into a hop bomb! Definitely a good deal in my town. Excellent plus!

 

Poured from a standard-pressure 12oz bottle into a tulip glass in high elevation Libby, Mont. No best-by date. Reviewed live.

A- Very thin white head. No retention. Dark ruby-red color with moderately high clarity. Disappointing looking beer.

S- Some dark fruits and chocolate malts as well. Rich, but surprisingly simple.

T- Dark malts, some earthy hops. Quite watery actually.

M- Light bodied and wet.

O- This is not a great beer. Nor is is a good one.

 

 

 

this interesting beer not sure it this rating fairly portrays this beer's uniqueness
starts off very carbonated I had to be care not to spill it as i open the bottle since some the head rushed out right away. Looks cool in the light purple almost an odd brown coke ish purple
The beer quickly loses the head in the glass and smells hop -herbal tea like Floral nice bitter malts and sweet malts and nice to smell
the taste is sour almost wild beer like at first then it becomes more malty a juicy beer chocolaty and a bit of smoke there too
I this is not bad though it sort of surprising
feel I think this is rather weak too soft of feel
I say this beer is drinkable and interesting beer to have once I am not sure I would get this beer again but it good and drinkable for a 7.5 % beer

Appearance: Dark mahogany with a half-inch of off-white head.

Smell: Subtle nuttiness and bread.

Taste: I got the immediate impression of a double-strength Lipton's iced tea. Slight acidity, nuttiness, bready malt.

Mouthfeel: Somewhat flat and thin.

Drinkability: You'd not know it was 7.5% ABV.

Got this extra in a great trade with a77cj7.. Thanks a ton Chris... I've spent many moons in Montana, yet never taken the time to review this one.

Poured into my Old Guardian goblet... thin sorta yellowish head.... little retention or lacing... the brew is polished deep walnut.

After some airing out, the nose is pretty nutty.. but the overall malts never seem to come around... hints of dusty cocoa.

Flavor has a good toasty malt presence up front yet moves into an odd sour note toward the finish.. I don't think it is the dreaded "infected", but there aren't enough dark malts there to bring in the dark acidic twang... really.... no big deal... The dark malts are dry.. there is a bit of yeasty fruitiness.. ehhhh.... okay.. body and carbonation show no problems.

3/3.5/3/3.5/4

12 oz bottle poured into a Sierra Nevada imperial pint. 7.5% ABV, no date.

A - Dark amber brown with a massive carbonation level feeding a humongous deep bone colored head of four fingers. Good retention. Tiny, dense bubbles on top with loose ones in the bottom. No lace left over though.

S - Interesting nose. Dark candi sugar, light coffee hints, a dry roasted nose that's almost like overly toasted bread. I can't put my finger on what the spice I smell is though.

T - Very unique. Toasted malts and bread up front have a quickly changing profile. Lots of nuances here; toffee, caramel, chocolate, coffee, some sort of spice, and an acidic, almost sour finish. Interesting and pretty good.

M - This medium-bodied ale is smooth with a carbonation crispness to the finish and an interesting lactic/sour/acidic thing going on.

D - Hmmm. Not something I'd like to have often but it's an interesting beer to try. Sweet label design as well!

Poured into a pint glass, thanks to jdostal, with a dark amber color and a 1 finger off white head that settled into a thin cap. The aroma is of bread, some slight roasted malt, a little nuttiness as well. The taste was slightly burnt caramel, nuts, and some dull malts. The taste was a little flat and I now notice quite a bit of sediment floating in the brew. This is just an OK beer. Not too much to write home about, but I do appreciate a shared sample.

Thanks to my buddy Jdostal for hooking me up with yet another beer...Beer Advocacy at it's best!

A - Poured from the brown bottle into a clear pint glass. The body of this brew looks brown in color but is actually a nice ruby red when held up to the light. The head is ridiculous on this beer...I know I'm moreorless an aggressive pourer, but this head is a foamy off white and 3 fingers tall. Retention is excellent for the first few minutes as it fades to a one finger finale. For as much head as this had, it left no lacing down the inside of my glass.

S - Sweet malts abound n the nose. Also dark black strap molasses and a hint of dark fruit.

T & M - I'm tasting the dark fruit a lot more than I smelled it in the nose, along with a hint of bitter chocolate. There is a slight bitterness in the finish. All of this rides on a malty backbone. Somewhat thinnish mouthfeel with a slight bite on the tongue from the moderate carbonation.

D - This brew pushes the ABV limit for this brew style, but the alcohol is really well masked. I would have never guessed this was 7.5%. A tasty beer, and one I think I could drink several of in a sitting. I would recommend it to my friends.

Thanks to JDostal for his NYE gift I am able to sample this Big Hole.

A - Dark brown body with two plus inches of light brown head. Held to light the body displays a thin amber hue. This head has some decent retention consisting of varying sizes of bursting air pockets.

S - Whiskey, anise, peanuts, alcohol, and cherry cough syrup.

T - It has long roast grain base. There's a black licorice flavor accompanied by a hint of chocolate. There's a bitterness to it reminding me of and English Ale.

M - it has a watery texture that goes down relatively smooth. The finish is slightly coarse but overall its a round texture.

~ Not bad. It has a unique robustness about it. It has the flavors of a winter warmer with the fell of a spring bock.

Dark brown color but when you hold it up to direct light you can see through it. Light lacing on the surface. Strong malt nose with some sweet elements. It reminds me of a deep purple colored malt I have smelled in homebrewing but can't recall the type, it also conjures images of mulberry or some other deep purple not sweet type of fruit. Malty attack starts off initially sweet but is touched by a little bit of smoke. There are some chocolate and caramel tones that come out after the beer has been "breathing" a while and perhaps because the temperature has risen. The sweet malt sensation is almost fruity. A little touch of fruit-like sweetness at the finish. A malty ale, but pretty good all said.

Picked up the sixer from Surdyk's, it was on special for $5.88 (I wonder how old it is) and for 7.5%, I figured that was a good deal and worth a try. I've heard of Big Hole before but never tried any of their offerings.

Pretty generic 12 oz bottle, with a cattle skull and "Big Hole Diablo Dark Ale" printed on the label. Poured into my pint glass as usual. Pours a dark brown, almost cola like color. When held into the light it gives off a purple color...odd. An aggressive pour produces an average tan head, due in part to the high carbonation. The head dissipates quickly, but a quick swirl will force it to return. Minimal lacing is present.

The aroma is very sweet. I get brown sugar and maybe some molasses. There is also a fruity sweet, and I feel this may be the infamous "dark fruit" that I believe this is the first time I can say I actually smelled it. There is also a roasted malt character here.

Not bad, not bad at all. There is the sweetness you get from the smell, but there is also a bitterness here, possibly bakers chocolate. Also, a there is a slight ground coffee aftertaste. The 7.5% is hidden extremely well, and virtually unnoticeable. The brew is surprisingly light, considering it's 7.5% content, but it's also very smooth.

Not to bad in the drinkablility department. Overall I was pleasantly surprised. It was thinner than I would have hoped, but thats ok, it made up for it in other area's. I don't think a lot of people will like this mainly for that reason, but I didn't find that it phased me too much. I enjoyed this. I don't know if I'll get this again any time soon, but it was a nice treat.

Interesting. Poured with a big, fluffy, frothy, foamy tan head. Some lace. Clear, dark, reddish brown color. Malty nose. Very soft mouth. On the sweet side with some chocolate, and yes, cola. Not bad. Tad too sweet. but, not bad. Pick up a hint of booze on the finish.