Drip Wizard Dark
Refined Fool Brewing Co.

473 mL can from the brewery; no canning date and served barely chilled. Tried the white stout version last night, so we'll see how this compares.

Pours an opaque, oily black colour with crimson red highlights; arising from the surface is two fingers of creamy, foamy, light beige-coloured head that is not in a hurry to go anywhere. Nearly ten minutes later, a lumpy cap and collar are still present - now *this* looks like a stout! Fantastic lace deposition, too. Roastier aroma than the white variant, with hints of dark chocolate alongside familiar notes of coffee, vanilla, toffee and caramelized sugars.

It's a solid sweet stout: I'm tasting cocoa and dark chocolate, together with toffee and medium roast coffee. Vanilla and caramel come through on the back end, followed by a bitter, roasty conclusion; coffee, cocoa and caramel fade into a bittersweet aftertaste. I complained about an astringency in the aftertaste of the White variant - it's here, too, but the Dark's roastier flavour profile helps with integration. Medium-full in body, with low carbonation that gently tickles the tongue during each sip; the mouthfeel is smooth and creamy. The 6.8% is better masked here than in the White.

Final Grade: 3.78, a respectable B+. While I prefer Drip Wizard Dark over the White, it doesn't particularly remind me of sticky toffee pudding - that is to say, it doesn't pull off its intended gimmick as well as the White. I feel like I need to dock it a few marks for that, but realistically I'd still rather be drinking this variant. I'd buy this again, and I think it's worth bringing back next fall or winter.