Ulster Black
Brehon Brewhouse

 

 

440mL can served in a tulip stout glass. BB29/04/25 #645 stamp on the bottom of the can, so a little past its prime. The label says this is an Oatmeal Stout....but BA says Dry Irish Stout. I'll review keeping both in mind.

Appearance: Very dark brown, approaching black, with a thick tan head with sheets and thick strands of persistent lacing.

Smell: A bit of chocolate (cocoa powder), roasted malt.

Taste: Roasted malt, light chocolate note, bitter finish. Simple, but hits the style rather well. Seems like it has aspects of an oatmeal stout and a dry Irish stout to it.

Mouthfeel: A little thin for an oatmeal stout, but otherwise just right carbonation, a tiny bit sticky on the teeth, and a dry finish.

Overall / Drinkability: Easily drinkable by itself, and I think this would pair well with food in which case I could see having another. By itself, just one is sufficient. Good looking beer with a surprisingly chocolate aroma for the style....depending upon what that style is exactly. Let's just call this a decent stout - but a bit thin for the body of a stout.

The pour is jet black with a lot of tan & frothy head of foamy carbonation, the addition of oats might be the reason for this. The taste is roasted malt, dark chocolate, along with hints of coffee, raisin, tobacco char, & caramel. Cheers! B

Look: It pours copper with a tan head. Head retention is very good.

Smell: It has chocolate aromas with some coffee. There are some low nut elements in the background.

Taste: It has coffee flavors with dried fruits including prunes, dark cherries, and floral notes. There are some nut like elements with slight bread and low chocolate.

Feel: It has a medium body with a bitter aftertaste with a touch of sweetness.

Overall, a beer with plenty of flavor, but a little on the light side color wise for a stout in my opinion.

500 ml bottle, no dating that I noticed on it. Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with about an inch and a half frothy tan head that stuck around for a while. There's also a good amount of lacing. Aroma is nice, the brew smells like oats/grainy malt, coffee, bittersweet chocolate and some roastiness. The taste is similar to the aroma, but with the addition of some burnt/charred malt and earthiness. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's smooth and has a lot of soft carbonation. Maybe a little too carbonated for my tastes but it doesn't hurt the drinkability too much. Thought this was a good overall brew, certainly worth a try if you come across some!

Pours a black color with a minimal head that lasts quite a while. Aroma of chocolate and roasted malts. Taste is tangy, black coffee and roasted malts with a somewhat bitter finish.

 

Poured stout black with a determined beige head which left sparse, if any lacing.
The taste was coffee forward, some cacao and more than a little char. I tried but failed to find any the the oat elements.
The feel is really quite good, but for an oatmeal stout a bit thin.
I think if this were labeled a "Coffee Stout" instead of an "Oatmeal Stout" it would be higher scored. Either way, it's well done for a 5% stout.

From the 500ml bottle in a pint glass. This solid little stout pours a very
dark blackish brown with a very nice head of light brown foam that settles to
a thick layer that lingers long. Nose of dark cocoa, moderate char, roast,
and light spicy hops. Flavors follow the nose with a few exceptions. Dark
cocoa and coffee notes marry with bitter malt, medium char, and dark roasted
goodness balanced with a lightly spicy herbal hop mellowed by oats. Mouth feel
is medium full, medium light carbonation that is moderately soft, and a nice bitter
malt and mellow oat finish that is coating and moderately dry.

Overall, a solid no frills stout.

Cheers

 

 

 

500ml bottle from Reilly's, Fermanagh (£2.50):
Opaque black with quite a large, 1 inch head that's foamy, dome shaped & quite thick looking head. There's dark malt on the nose with a tiny bit of spice then hints of caramel too with spice to finish. Dark malt & oatmeal flavours come through in the taste with faint spice again too. There's a roasted bitterness towards the end but it's quite a basic stout with a medium body & soft carbonation; it was a little underwhelming though.

 

 

 

 

 

Top class brew well done ,can't wait to get a few more..lovely head,nice flavour and aftertaste great in front of the fire