Smeerolie
Brouwerij De Moersleutel

Løkken 2/7 2023. 44 cl can from Kvickly, Østergade, Middelfart. Metallic grey can with Moersleutels logo with two wrenches in white.

Pours opaque dark brown - almost black - with a mid-sized dark beige head. A bit bubbly. Settles as thin rim of foam running along the side of the glass. Very moderate lacing.

Aroma is medium intense with a sweet, earthy and a little boozy odor. Sweet dark malts. Toffee and milk chocolate. Brown sugar. Licorice. Potent dark alcohol lurking behind leather and tobacco. Light whiff of citrus.

Light carbonation. Rather thick, oily, soft, a little sticky and viscous, almost flat texture.

Flavor is intense with a strong sweetness followed by a moderately strong bitterness. Aftertaste is sweetish with a bitter undertone. Looming alcohol. Lingering. Finish is quite dry.

Dark, potent and not unpleasant. Lubricating indeed.

 

 

Pours a pitch black coloration with a medium, creamy, mocha-colored head. Smells of roasted, caramel malt, brown sugar, molasses, chocolate and dark fruits, with hints of coffee, licorice and vanilla as well. Taste follows the nose exactly, with a good balance of quite roasted, caramel malt, brown sugar, molasses, dark fruits: raisin, fig, plum, milk chocolate, coffee, licorice and hints of vanilla and tobacco. Finishes with a medium bitterness and some roasted malt, dark fruits and licorice lingering in the aftertaste. Full, creamy mouthfeel with a medium/rich body and light/medium carbonation.

This is an interesting Stout in the sense that it's quite sweet and roasted/bitter at the same time, with sweet notes of molasses, brown sugar and dark fruits and bitter notes of roasted malt, licorice and tobacco. While there is a decent balance to this, I would personally still prefer it to be a little less sweet and more roasted/bitter. Also seems to turn a bit more sweet and boozy as it warms.

Really dark brown color with a bit of brownish foam. Aroma has dark malts, umami and some booze. Taste is a bit metallic and mineral with roasted malts and some umami. Quite roasty with some ashy bitterness.

 

Got this one at Three Meters in Utrecht

From a 375 into a snifter
Batch 09 22
EBC: 100
EBU: 50
Malts: Pale, Munich, Wheat, Amber 150, Special B, Chocolate, Brown, Cara 120 and Black malts.
Hops: Columbus

APPEARANCE: Transparent dark brown pour yields a two finger, looser looking, foamy, light tan head with decent retention. Clear black body with medium carbonation evident. Head fades to full cap. Ring remains until the end leaving some falling dots of lacing down the glass.

SMELL: Roasted malts with dark fruits, plumbs and raisins, milk chocolate aromas, touches of vanilla and some leather notes as well. Medium strength.

TASTE: Very burnt and roasted up front, with some sweet dark fruit and brown sugar. Leather and some tobacco as well. Some booze and charred flavors at the swallow with a bold and lingering finish of leather, roasted and burnt malts, sweet dark fruits and sugar, bitter dark chocolate and light notes of vanilla. Definitely roasted with dark fruity flavors too.

PALATE: Medium body and slightly higher levels of carbonation. Creamy on the palate, a little light, goes down fine with a bit of a burn and finishes somewhat sticky. Some heat lingers.

OVERALL: Solid stuff. I’d like my imperial stouts a touch blacker perhaps, but that’s pretty minor. This one is plenty roasted and burnt with some nice bitter-sweet characteristics going on to make it interesting and enjoyable. A solid beer worth checking out. Cheers!

EDIT: Newer batches of this in 44cl cans are better. I've had a few of the 2020 batch and the look is darker, the head is creamier and thicker, and the feel is slick, viscous and heavy. The aroma and flavor profile are much the same, but the finishing touches make it a much more enjoyable experience. Based on this current batch (best by Jan 2024) , this is definitely a 4+ beer now. Doesn't surprise me, given that their recent stout beers have been world class. Cheers!