Its been a bit crazy lately with the two houses and stuff going on at work. After school today, my wife had to take the kids to a doctor appointment. So, when I got home, I had the house all to myself. So I sat down and pulled the first beer I could find out of the fridge. I don’t remember if I picked up this beer during our vacation to Florida last year, or if it was one my sister gave me after her trip to Asheville in the fall. I think it may have been the latter.
The bottle says, “Black Whole is a multi-dimensional ale that takes many twists and turns similar to our daily lives. It has a big chocolate expression with moderate caramel notes, complex toasted to biscuit notes and hints of clove and black licorice. Don your chocolate mask and discover the meaning of life as you said this complex, dark beer.”
Location: Poured into a Sam Adams Perfect Pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL.
Numbers: 8% ABV
Appearance & Aroma: It’s dark black in color, with some dark brown, mahogany highlights when held up to the light. It had a big bubbly head when I first poured it, which fell to a quarter inch thick creamy layer with great retention and lacing. The aroma is dark chocolate and molasses like with hints of caramel and coffee.
Taste & Feel: The body is medium and the mouthfeel is smooth and slightly creamy from the head. The flavor up front is like a lightly bitter dark chocolate with a bit of molasses. In the middle, more sweetness comes through with chocolate and caramel flavors. The flavors open up in the finish with dark chocolate and molasses flavors dominating, and a mix of caramel maltiness, biscuitiness, and burnt toffee flavor in the background. The chocolate and molasses flavors are what stick around for a minute or two in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: This beer has a lot of dark and slightly sweet flavors and would make a perfect pairing with BBQ ribs.
Overall Impression: This beer definitely had a lot going on in it with a mixture of dark flavors. The dark chocolate flavors were a little bitter at first, but become slightly sweet in the middle. In the finish, the molasses flavors grow a bit adding to the sweetness and bitterness. Overall, it is one of the more complex beers I’ve had, which his both good and perplexing. I enjoyed the complexity and trying to pick out flavors, but the mix of flavors – dark chocolate and molasses – wasn’t necessary one I longed for.
My Rating: 
Recent Comments