Stout
Midtfyns Bryghus

Bottle: Poured a black color stout with a dirty brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of dry coffee notes with some black chocolates and light bitter roasted malt notes. Taste is also dominated by black chocolates notes with some light bitter roasted malt and light dry floral coffee notes. Body is quite smooth with some creamy notes and good carbonation with no apparent alcohol. A lot of flavours without too much alcohol makes this a wonderful early winter stout.

50cl brown bottle with a freshness date.

Heady beginnings drop to a thin sticky lace. Pretty much pitch black. Burnt wood, buttery yeast and over-caramelized sugar in the nose. Slick medium body, bitty and burnt with charcoal, coffee and carob powder. Hint of buttery yeasty with a clean alcoholic ester in tow ... perhaps some vague fruit as well. Mild hopping. Dry malt finish.

A little too drinkable for the 7.2%, dry and complex. Pleased that it was not a thick version. Good drinking for sure.

Got this at De Bierkoning in Amsterdam.

From a bottle into a pint glass.

APPEARANCE: Pours a nice 1+ finger thick tan head that fades fast into a very thin film, though some foam remains around the edges. Color is pitch black and opaque. Film disappears totally and leaves no lacing. Color is nice, but it looks pretty average by the midway point.

SMELL: A powerful nose of roasted and smoky barley malt. A strong scent of pure bitter chocolate, with a bit of coffee in the background as well, but the roasted malt is still in the forefront. Very nice and makes a statement.

TASTE: Roasted barley malt up front with a nice smoky component and a touch of licorice as well. The aftertaste is very nice; starts with bitter pure chocolate, a bit of espresso, and then finishes with a slight bit of spicy alcohol at the end. A strong, pleasant taste that tells a story. Nice.

PALATE: Silky creamy smooth on the palate, medium-full body with medium carbonation. Goes down slightly rough with a bit of an alcohol bite at the end. Very sticky and mouth coating on the palate.

OVERALL: Though the look was average, the rest of the experience was top notch. Smelt and tasted very impressive. This was a great treat and I'll definitely pick up another bottle in the future, even though it was a whopping 5 euro in Amsterdam. Recommended.