Origin of Darkness - Dugges Bryggeri
Collective Arts Brewing

Perhaps against better judgment, two twelve ounce cans were emptied entirely into a clear glass liter mug. There wasn't much of a short-lived dark tan head, so the pours weren't problematic. The mint and then the tannins dominate the aroma. Maybe there's some chocolate and raspberry there, too. The brew is almost black coffee, carrying a tint of dark mahogany. It tastes richer and drinks more thickly than it poured. Amazingly, there's a much better balance to taste than there was to smell. The mint still comes to the forefront and except for some vague fruity sweetness, the raspberry is undefined. But, the mint isn't annoying, as the chocolate inclusion presents itself and mellows it. Best of all, the tannins give the other flavors a break, letting them star and mostly just adds to the rich mouthfeel and smoothness. For some, the concept of mint and tannins in a brew are unappealing, understandably so. But this is done about as tastefully as possible. The nearly velvety smooth mouthfeel helps the appreciation and disguises the ABV. Like most high octane and heavily flavored beers, it leaves no lacing. It may leave you wishing you had more.

 

355 mL can purchased from the brewery a long time ago; dated Sep 7 2022 and served barely chilled.

Pours black as hell, generating nearly an inch of soapy, bubbly dark brown head that dissipates rapidly. Within a few minutes, the surface is totally barren; no collar, with only a scuzzy film clinging to the glass. Dark chocolate, mint and fudge on the nose, with hints of raspberry syrup, caramel, bourbon and vanilla.

It starts off strong, with intense flavours of brownie, dark chocolate, caramelized sugars and fudge. The mint peaks mid-sip, followed by raspberry syrup, bourbon, burnt wood and vanilla on the back end; dark chocolate chips and bourbon booziness continue into a sticky-sweet, chocolatey aftertaste. Thick bodied, with very low carbonation and a slick, oily mouthfeel that coats the tongue with each sip; slightly numbing from the robust abv. Not super drinkable - even this modest serving is a bit much, to be honest.

Final Grade: 3.81, a B grade. Origin of Darkness (Dugges) is a fine example of how adding more ingredients does not necessarily improve an imperial stout. They should've picked one of either raspberry or mint, as these two things mostly just clash with one another. That's not to say the end product doesn't have its merits, but I suspect this would've been better if they'd skipped the mint entirely in favour of a more complementary ingredient. In fact, its saving grace might be that the mint flavour isn't all that strong. This is interesting enough to be worth a try, but still one of the weaker OoDs IMO.

 

Pours extremely thick, but there's virtually no head worth mentioning. Appears to be some fine particulate out of suspension.

Raspberry and mint come through prominently on the nose, giving this stout a uniquely bright (but not unpleasant) aroma. Additional notes of chocolate and molasses are very much in the background; the bourbon is barely noticeable.

Flavor follows: it's very bright, and the mint is too strong, although the chocolate thankfully does make more of an appearance on the palate. The bourbon just can't quite get noticed here. Additional notes of molasses and caramel.

Nice thick mouthfeel.

This was an interesting idea, but I think the mint by itself is too strong, and in combination with the raspberry simply too bright and overpowering.

Can: Poured a pitch-black color stout with a nice medium brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of black chocolate notes with some light tart raspberry notes and some mint notes also perceptible. Taste is also a heavy mix of black chocolate notes with some bourbon and tart raspberry notes with a somewhat strong mint finish. Body is full with a nice oily-like texture with average carbonation and light warning alcohol notes. Interesting but maybe a tad too much going on at the same time.

Big fan of this series even if many of the beers fall short of greatness - I love both the adventurous variations and the many collaborations thus far. This is just a little too weird though. When have you had, or wanted to have, mint and raspberry together? There is a full creamy body and feel here and just the right amount of sweetness but it’s just odd.

 

 

Collective Arts/Dugges collab 'Origin of Darkness' @ 11.6% , served from a 355 ml can , third of four
A-pour is black from the can to glass with a small size tan head , dissipating into a minimal lace ring
S-raspberry & mint upfront , chocolate in the background
T-very sweet chocolate & mint start , big tasting Bourbon Imperial stout , sweet raspberry swallow
MF-mild carbonation , feels full bodied
Ov-very easy drinking barrel aged Bourbon beer
prost LampertLand

I love this series. I’ve collected them for the past few years. This one is extremely unique. It’s unlike other BA stouts Ive had in the past. The mint and raspberry dominate my experience. There is less sweetness than I expected, hard to note the barrel characteristics with the adjuncts. Hard to tell it’s an imperial stout really. I really like it. It’s different, enjoyable and curious.

355 ml can from the brewery. Canned September 7, 2022. Served cool into a pint glass.

Appearance - Virtually black in color and pours two large fingers of very dark brown frothy head with good staying power. Lots of brown lacing here there and everywhere on the glass.

Smell - Raspberry, with earthy mint undertones and backed by some chocolate. Fresh and fruit with some nice accents. Intense aromatics.

Taste - Boozy kind of medicinal raspberry and bitter chocolate flavor. The mint ramps up the medicinal qualities. The mint does provide some nice aftertaste, but can see some fans not loving the flavor combo. Bourbon is pretty subdued, maybe a some wood and subdued bourbon flavors but does increase the impact and duration of intense flavor. Licorice and Jagermeister type flavors start showing up too as it warms.

Mouthfeel - Full bodied, lightly carbonated and sort of chewy with huge amount of booziness in the back of the throat. Definitely coming in hot.

Overall - Good brew and some will really enjoy this version of Origin of Darkness, but many others may not care for it, given the flavor combo and heat in the back of throat has a close proximity with cough syrup.