Lump Of Coal Dark Holiday Stout | Ridgeway Brewing

3.65/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Saw this one last year never tired it saw it again it was okay. Kind of surprised a higher abv stout would be this thin. Had some nice qualities tasted okay but nothing that made me want to have another. It poured dark but again not so much their for taste some malts but again thin.

Glad I tried it always nice to have something different not sure if I would have again.

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2.29/5  rDev -33.6%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2

Reddish brown in color. Tinge of red towards the top where the light penetrates. This is the Christmas equivalent of getting coal in your stocking as a kid. It's bland and virtually flavorless. Sweet, dry malt. Ho ho ho, Awful.

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4.08/5  rDev +18.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours not quite a lump of coal dark but close with some nice ruby tint thru out with an off white head that is gone quite quickly.deeply roasted malt and dark fruit in the nose with a hint of milk chocolate,big robust flavors for a big stout tarry and fruity roasted of course with a light smoky flavor in the finish.Wow I really like theis holiday stout big and complex and quite quaffable to boot.

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3.94/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance - Well, beside the lack of head I noticed that it's really not all that dark. I mean, yeah, it's dark, but not like a lump of coal. It said "Dark Holiday Stout" on the label too. It looks nice, just not super dark.

Smell - This English Stout has a nice, light burnt malt aroma with some notes of yeast and nuts. I hate to say chestnuts because it sounds so cheesy (holiday beer and all) but that's kind of what I'm getting.

Taste - This has a sharp burnt malt flavor to it that really lingers beautifully on the palate. There are some sugars at the taste that I didn't catch at the nose, but they are relatively subdued.

Mouthfeel - This just does meet my definition of medium-bodied. It lacks that nasty citrus tang that I've found in some cheap examples of the style. The blackened malts offer some bitterness at the finish.

Drinkability - The slight dryness at the end makes you want to drink more of it, but the flavors are sharp enough to keep one sipping. Nothing out of this world but nicely done just the same.

Update - I re-tried this holiday beer the day before Thanksgiving 2009 and it's just as I remembered it from my notes. I got a little better aroma from the glass this time around so upped my Smell rating half a point but otherwise this was right on.

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3.5/5  rDev +1.4%

3.5/5  rDev +1.4%

3.25/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Clever label, mediocre beer. A 50dc bottle poured into an imperial pint glass. The beer was dark brown with red highlights. It had a medium-sized tan head that disappeared quickly. Roasted malt and faint chocolate aroma. Coffee and chocolate taste, teeny bit of hops. The beer seemed to be pretty watery, and I don't think I'll have it again.

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2.33/5  rDev -32.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

500 ml bottle. Pours ruby brown with a medium frothy light tan head that goes to a thin film and laces the glass.

The aroma is sweet roasted oaty chocolate and caramel.

The flavor is sweet sugary dark fruits, roasted grainy chocolate malts with some black licorice and ashy bitterness in the finish. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with low carbonation and a bit watery.

Overall, it's overly sweet, grainy and ashy.

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3.53/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

1/5  rDev -71%

4.5/5  rDev +30.4%

3.58/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours a dark brown to black color with some off-white bubbles but not real head. The aroma is heavy on the chocolate and roasted malt with some anise notes mixed in. The flavor is almost identical. The chocolate and roasted malt are what really stands out, but the licorice/anise notes are in the flavor as well. Thick mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Not great, but one of the better Ridgeway beers I have tried.

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3.5/5  rDev +1.4%

2.93/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Poured cold from 1pt 9oz bottle into pint glass. Nice creamy looking head low, holds at about 1/8 of an inch.

Smells of malts and maybe a hit of copper. Taste is nice, albeit light for a Stout, I think that this is a nice stout for people who normally find a stout a little stronger that what they would normally drink. It does have a nice chocolaty taste and nice creamy mouthfeel.

A little bitter aftertaste on the finish, but all in all a decent beer.

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4.35/5  rDev +26.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: poured opaque black with some reddish brown hints on the edges , a creamy tan inch of head dissipated to a nice , lasting layer.

Smell: dark, roasty , and slightly sweet malt , some dairy , hint of chocolate syrup , very faint licorice.

Taste: Nice creamy body of roasted malt , bittersweet chocolate , slight dairy, coffee bean , some darker berry / fruity qualities , and pleasant hop bitterness keeps it all very well balanced in the finsh.

Mouthfeel: creamy and smooth.

Drinkability: A very nice stout. The only thing that makes it holiday like imo is the warming strenghth. Very pleasant roasty , chocolatey ,and sweet flavors that are kept in a great creamy balance.

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3.43/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

3.75/5  rDev +8.7%

2.27/5  rDev -34.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

The best part of this beer is how it looks. Midnight black pour with a short-lived brown head. It goes downhill from there. Sour, fake-malt aroma with dank wood and grain. Thin, watery mouthfeel. The taste is not like any stout I have ever had. Corn, grain, sour hops, metal, and burnt malt, but in a bad way. The worst is yet to come: a Jelly Belly popcorn aftertaste. Seems like a gimmick name for a bad, overpriced beer.

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3.34/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

served into a nonic glass from a brown bottle 1pt.9oz. with crimp-on cap.

Opque,black reddish hue in light, 1" tan head dissapated quickly into coating throughtout,a bit of spotty lacing down the glass.

Strong chocolate aromas,also carmell/toffee/roasty,complex malt aromas.a winey,fruity smell,hints of vanallia,Samuel Smith comes to mind in the aromas.

Very chocolaty tastes,also roasty.a sweet boozy taste,a bit winey.
Notes of vanallia,the finish is dry,tart,bitter,yet very clean. Not a bad taste, just a bit boring.

A medium mouthfeel,creamy,a tad sticky. Easy drinking, just wouldn't
drink more than a few. This beer just reminds more more of a porter than a stout. Not a bad beer nothing to get excited about though.

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4.38/5  rDev +27%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from local Wegman's. A little pricey for a 16.9 ounce bottle but it is imported from UK. This is not a beer for the casual stout lover. It is unusual with a strong burnt wood flavor which imparts a lasting finish. Since I grew up in a working family, I ate a lot of burnt food and grew to like it. My wife likes her marshmallows lightly toasted, but I prefer them burning like a fireball until black and hard. Thus, for me this is an excellent version of a holiday stout. There are other flavors in there including sweet dark fruits, but the carbonized wood is the main feature.

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4.5/5  rDev +30.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Hint of smoke and rye

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4/5  rDev +15.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

L: Pours bright, dense dark brown to black under a clingy 3” tan foam collar with a fine bead. S: Malty, light roast, dark dried fruit. T: Lightly sweet, dark dried fruit, hints of chocolate. Nothing burnt or harsh. F: Full bodied, very soft on the palate. O: An inoffensive, easy to drink sweet stout.

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3.5/5  rDev +1.4%

3.3/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Bought this for the novelty of the bottle. my initial impression? "eh". not the best. beer was very dark, almost too dark. Pitch black. malty taste.

Like some of my other reviews, this was taken from my notes, and is from winter 2007. I definitely need to retry this beer.

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4.1/5  rDev +18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 500 ml bottle into a New Belgium Globe glass.

Appearance: Pours a very dark blackish brown with a slight hint of ruby. Moderate amount of bubbles and about two fingers of light tan head that recede into a thin patchy layer. Leaves a decent amount of spotty lacing around the glass.

Smell: A roasty and sweet dark aroma. Roasted malts with hints of chocolate, coffee, burnt caramel, toffee, and hazel nut. Mild hint of smoke. Also some light undertones of dark fruit including prune and raisin. Sweet scents of brown sugar. Hop scent is very light. A pretty nice roasty and burnt aroma.

Taste: Like the aroma hints, a nice roasty and sweet mix of dark malt flavor. Dark roasted malts with a taste of chocolate, burnt caramel, toffee, hazelnut, coffee, burnt toast, and a little smoke. Burnt sugars add some sweetness. Light taste of dark raisin, fig, and prune. Subtle earthy hops in the background. A pretty nice roasted taste.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a moderate amount of carbonation. Creamy and somewhat slick. Moderately drying finish. Alcohol is hidden pretty well.

Overall: Pretty good for a smaller English Stout. Nice roasty flavors and balanced sweetness.

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