Blackboard Series #7 - Black Forest Cake Stout with Cherry
Victory Brewing Company - Downingtown

The dark black beer pours out into a Duvel glass with a 1/2" dark tan head that recedes slowly to leave lots of lacing on the sides of the glass. Sipping creates a pattern with lots of small patches and a few legs of lacing. Most of the way through the beer there is still a thin layer of foam over most of the surface and sheets of lacing still cling to the sides of the glass.

The aromas mostly include some roasted coffee and dark chocolate with a bit of cherry in the background.

As expected, the flavors from the dark roasted malt include the coffee and dark chocolate. While there's a bit of cherry and sweetness here, it is almost concealed by the dark roast slightly burnt bitterness, especially when the beer is cold. However, as the beer warms the roasted bitterness backs off a bit allowing the cherry and the bit of sweetness to play a more important role in the flavors.

The mouthfeel is on the full side of medium bodied and smooth as the carbonation is very light but persistent. The finish begins as the dark chocolate and coffee begin to fade, allowing the cherry sweetness to move briefly forward before it too start to fade and leave the ending mostly to the slightly burnt dark roast dryness. But even with that dryness there’s still a hint of cherry in the background.

On the whole I've enjoyed this stout for the complexity of the aromas and flavors and will be fine with having another. It’s well enough made that I’d suggest at least giving it a try. That said I've a list of some other American stouts I’ve enjoyed more and so will probably not be seeking out another six pack before they are all gone.

 

 

10/21/2018; GA Chapter Room

I enjoyed this from the bottle chilled in a cup purchased at Wegmans
the color is black with opaque clarity and tan head.
The smell is malt with a slight stone fruit aroma.
The feel is full with dry body and moderate carbonation with roast and slight sweetness with a fruity presence.
This is a good stout without a lot of adjunct flavor more balance of malt with roast and some mild alcohol and fruit but not a ton of cocoa taste.
The overall impression is this is good but not very dessert-like

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Nearly black pour with 2 fingers of tannish head. Solid ring of lacing.

S: Roasted grains, dark sugars, and black cherry. Sweet and bitter.

T/F: Just like the nose... rich roasted grains and burned sugars... cocoa, cherry juice... mix of sweet fruit and bitter roast. Also mild tartness from the cherry. Good flavor combinations... medium bodied with nice carbonation. The finish is cherry chocolate.

O: A pretty delicious cherry/chocolate stout from Victory. One of their better 'blackboard' releases. An enjoyable dessert beer.

 

 

 

Hard poured from a bottle. Nice very dark brown, almost black color. Tan head that sticks around a bit and laces nice. Cherry and chocolate smells, with flavour that follows. Nice bitter chocolate and sour cherry is what I’m getting. Good flavour and a very good beer!

 

Enjoy by 2/19/28. Consumed on 2/21/18. Shoot.

Pours black with a good sized khaki tan head. Beautiful lacing on the glass.

Smell of tart cherries mainly.

A bit of roast bitterness on the back end.

An ok brew. Not amazing by any means. Not terrible.

 

 

Pours black with a well retained thin tan head that left spotty lacing. Smells of chocolate covered cherries. Tastes of tart cherries, dark chocolate, a hint of coffee, roasted malts and an unpleasant earthy quality. Thin mouth feel, light bodied, minimal carbonation. Overall a disappointment.