Best year for Dark Lord

2010 was the only recipe change that was announced the abv went from 13 to 15% they started using intelligentsia coffee, Turbinado Sugar, and Madagascar vanilla bean.

 

I did a 10-12 vert when 12 was first released. 10 was the best, 12 the worse. This beer obviously need 2-3 years on it. Still wish I hadn't given up a Huna for it though and won't seek it out again.

 

I thought last years kinda sucked... I had the white wax one from maybe 09? it was decent and I believe the Green wax from 10 was probably my favorite.

 

2007 IMO, although the bottles I've had have all been different. The first bottle I tried was big and had a lot of almond and cashew. The most recent bottle was big, rich, viscous, oily and still had some roast.

 

My favorite Dark Lord is any Dark Lord I trade for a different beer.

 

the elusive DL '05 Kikkoman-aged.

 

Fresh, the best vintages have been 08 and 11 if you like the coffee flavor.

Aged varies obviously, but it seems the best aged Dark Lords are between two and three years old. It's funny hearing all the bad reviews of 12 because they all seem to be the same as the reviews for fresh 09, but right now, 09 is drinking the best out of Dark Lords two years and older. I think next year, the 11 will still be stellar, though, and my new all time favorite. Not sure where the 10 is going to fit into the aged equation.

 

I heard this year's was pretty disappointing from several friends but have not tried it myself. I was referring to the fact that to my tastebuds it's just too cloying and one-dimensional without a few years on it, but YMMV.

 

I've had '09, '11 and '12. The '11 was my fav of the 3.

 

2008 was far and away my favorite. The 06 was pretty solid too and that's the oldest I've drank.
It's been quite different since 09 IMO and it definitely needs a couple years to mellow out.

Wish I could have some year old 08 right about now!

 

It seems like no one can Agee on anything. What's with all the hype behind this beer if its not that good?

 

If anyone doesn't like dl and wants to trade, let me know.

 

a few friends and i did a 06-11 blind vert around the beginning of the year. outside of one person, the consensus was pretty much the older, the better. rankings were 06, 08, 07, 09, 10, 11. However, I loved the 12 fresh. Personally I'd rank it as 06, 08, 12, 07, 09, 10, 11

 

I had them rated:
11 (excellent)
08 (awesome)
09 (pretty good)
10 (decent, hoppy)/06 (oxidized upfront, delicious finish)
12 (still a bit green)
07 (ehhhhh)

 

we did the 6-12 vert back in October and the general consensus was 06 and 08 were the best, by far.
my personal rankings: 08, 06, 10, 07, 11, 12, 09
the 09 was noticeably thinner and somewhat oxidized

 

At least everyone seems to agree that 08 was one of the best.

 

Or it just means 2012 universally sucks haha. Storage likely has a lot to do with it all. I couldn't vouch at all for the 07 DL bottle that was opened because it was acquired by one of the people at the tasting last minute. 06 was as good as you could hope for in a 7 yr old beer. The finish was excellent. It was just noticeably oxidized upfront. When paired with wheat thins, the oxidation was prett masked

 

I know the guy I got it from and he knows what he's doing. It's just too old for a Dark Lord to be sitting around.

FTFY

 

Wasn't accusing him of anything, just stating I didn't know the storage conditions.

Also, I grammar like an idiot

 

The ever popular question.... Here's my interpretation of the general consensus over the past few years:

In 2010... 2006 DL was generally considered the best, with 2008 being a standout, 2009 was considered a sweet mess, and 2010 fresh was polarizing

In 2011... 2006 still very sought after, 2008 could be the best, 2009 still sweet mess, 2010 solid, 2011 - too sweet, too much coffee

In 2012... 2006 over the hill, 2008 the best (maybe starting to turn over), 2009 finally came around, 2010 tasting very good, 2011 tasting very good, 2012 tastes like green apples.

Just figured I would massively generalize and add to the confusion Seems like 2007 gets ignored quite a bit for some reason, and the 04/05 are so hard to get that very few people know what they taste like now... but usually experiences are not very good with those at this point.