Japas Cervejaria: Black Daruma

Got my box from FedEx today!
Dove right into Black Daruma and put the first review up.,. Cheeeers!
( 1 for 1 @Todd )

 

First beer from the new box! Split with my husband. Poured into a snifter.

Take home points: thin body for a stout and definitely a lot of smoked flavor. I love this but it wasn't a home run for my husband.


My review overall score 4.27
The persimmon comes out by far the most in the nose and is quite pungent with a light classic RIS Background and a hint of smoke.

Upfront is mild persimmon flavor with a moderate backbone of roasted malt. For the finish a ton of smokiness and roasted malt is left to linger.

Body is extremely light for an IRS and drinkable with moderate carbonation

I really like this one. The 11% is extremely well hidden. Couple that with a relatively light body and the smoked flavor and you have a real winner for me. Drinks like a Baltic porter vs imperial stout.

 

Unsure I have ever tried a persimmon, but happy to hear about the smokiness in this one. Haven't received my box yet, definitely looking forward to it!

 

I liked this one a lot!

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/53187/629215/?ba=bluejacket74#lists




Cheers!

 

Whoa this is so smooth. I like dried persimmon but not candied or fresh so was nervous if I'd like this. The persimmon is pretty subtle, just that touch of squash or earth in there, I liked it very much.

 

My 5th sample out of EBB: Big Stouts. Deep amber w/ thick tan head. Roasty malt aroma with a flowery sweetness over top. Dark roast flavor with a mango-like fruitiness in the background. Spicy. Creamy. Not thick, but it has good body. One of my most anticipated and this one didn’t disappoint. Japas hasn’t failed to impress me with their expert use of unusual ingredients that reflect their Japanese culture. Absolutely beautiful brewers!

 

I almost forget I have a red daruma in the house. This was nice and boozy but left a pretty strong espresso-like bitterness. Not bad just a bit strong. I had trouble picking up the persimmon. Awesome coffee and roasty aroma with nice warming alcohol.

 

No "daruma drama" here! Just solid dark chocolate, licorice, and espresso on the nose and palate. Mouthfeel a bit thin for the style. Lovely earthy, astringent fruit notes from the persimmon on the finish. Another smooth and delicious big stout from the box!

 

Anything listed as a RIS better not have any light shine through when I pour it, this one did, which made me skeptical to begin with. Second, I had to look up what a persimmon tastes like.
I didn't dislike this beer, it had an ok enough flavor, good roastiness, but that's where it ends for me. It was way too thin on body for me to take it seriously as a RIS. I guess if I try hard enough I can say I tasted the dried fruit flavor from the persimmon, but maybe I just really wanted it to be there. Drinkable for sure, but overall this is more miss than hit for me.

 

First one I tried from The Box, and of the four had so far, this is my favorite!

 

I really liked this beer more than I thought I would - I'll give a nod to the folks who don't think it's a real RIS, maybe a Imperial Brown with persimmon would have been a better descriptor.
Anyhoo...

4.32/5 rDev +5.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

L - More of a dark brown ale, WITH some characteristics of Stout, not much head or lacing as it went down.
S - Things got a LOT more interesting on the news as those first hints of dark, bitter chocolate, hit the nose. A bit of oak impression, dark cherries, and then...
T - Even more impressive is the overall roundness, sophistication of how this hits the palate - like a graceful thinner version of Wookey Jack with charred persimmon notes all the way down. Wow this works for me. Impressed.
F - Great mouthfeel - for those thinking it's thin, I'm OK with that, as it also doesn't come across as too heavy, cloying, or creamy. Love it, and the ABV is well hidden until it SMACKS.
O - This one is so far one of my faves from the box, an unexpected joy, and one I didn't see coming. Nice that it's three women brewers. A bit confusing if it's brewed in Chicago or not, but I really liked this stout. Completely different.

 

This was my 5th beer from the Extreme Beer Box and so far the only beer that I have consumed all 16oz, (previous 4 were 4oz minimum drain pours). When the "lovely bride" saw the can she flipped out. She knew what a "Daruma" is. Anyway, she even thought the beer was OK.

 

ha - this was exactly what happened when my spouse (who spent a couple of years in Japan) saw the can - and she demanded her fair share. Nice - it really was an interesting beer...

 

#6 for me. The persimmon is a unique twist and provides a nice primary note. The underlying RIS is good, but not excellent for style…pretty standard fare of bittersweet chocolate, dark roast coffee and brown sugar in addition to some leather and wood char. End result is a solid brew, but definitely not the best of this batch. The name and can design are super cool as is the brewery backstory.

 

The first of the beers I voted for in the "looking forward to" poll...


Lovely pour... and as I type, the GF says, "Little more tart than I expected."

Nose has a mix of dark chocolate and a tangy fruit note that one would have to assume is the persimmon, though without knowledge of the ingredient I would say is a mix of plum, prune, and citrus.

I am not getting the tartness that the GF gets in the taste, though. A charred toast opening with a charred wood middle. The back end is where I get a bit of a tannic fruited tea flavor from a squeezed tea bag, a note that again I'd guess was influenced by the added fruit.

Overall, more dark roast bitterness than I expected,. The GF corrected her statement to say she used the wrong word and really meant to indicate it was "less sweet" than she expected. I like it as a pretty straightforward dry stout with allusions to an additional ingredient I'd of course never have been able to nail.

Edit: looking back, I think my palate is in most agreement with @cryptichead of the reviews ahead of mine.

 

A dark pour with a lot of head. Persimmon on the nose with maybe some dark chocolate and espresso. A thinner mouth feel than I would have thought. Taste is roasty and chocolate notes followed by some charred bitterness and I get just a hint of the persimmon. It's more bitter than I expected, but that's not bad. I would have liked the persimmon to be a bit more pronounced, but overall this is a solid brew.

 

I don't understand Black Daruma, and I couldn't tell what persimmon tastes like in a line-up, but it is really roasty anyway. Neither cocoa bean nor coffee bean. Not cherry, really but there's something fruity in here. Eh, it's fine.

 

Last of the new to me beers from the box. This isn't the one I was the most excited to try, but it is the one that intrigued me the most.

The base stout is wonderfully dry, with plenty roasty char that suggest coffee grounds and slightly overdone toast. I get a little something at the end that I'm not familiar with, guess that's the persimmon? It is subtle but provides a nice contrast. Overall this is drinking like an old school impy stout to me, really enjoying it!

 

this was quite good. i expected it to not be my thing based on the fruit addition but it works here. not at all fruit forward in any way and really almost just acts as a compliment to the already present dark fruit aspects of a good RIS. colder it was slightly hoppier with an alcohol bite to it but as it warmed over the course of the session it became smoother and smoother. cheers!!

 

Here's the skinny on persimmons...

Persimmons from Serious Eats, interesting but wordy.

From myrecipes that's a bit easier to read.

The taste apparently varies substantially based on a ton of factors. Sweet, slightly tangy, tannic, astringent - all over the msp influenced by variety, soil, etc etc etc.

 

Like most, I was not sure what to expect with this stout. To me it is closer to a stout in thickness rather than thin like a porter. I do like the mouthfeel. The persimmon is in the background which to me makes this stand apart from a typical RIS. It is smooth and drinkable and hides the alcohol well. Another interesting stout in the box!

 

The persimmon adds some honey-like sweetness to a solid RIS. The base beer has lots of chocolate and a bit of dark fruit. Drinks like a cola. The detail that stands out is how well the higher ABV% (11%) is hidden. The mouth feel may be a little thin, but it works with the sweetness added by the persimmon. Lots of red garnet in the appearance. Very good to include this in the package.