Harpoon Chocolate Stout - Harpoon Brewery

TeamMathis

West Virginia

4.06/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Appearance: Black with a quickly dissipating dark, tan head.
Smell: Intense chocolate with roasted coffee beans.
Taste: Chocolate with roasted coffee beans. Bitter aftertaste.
Mouthfeel: Watery yet with decent carbonation.

I really like this stout. The chocolate smell is one of the most pronounced of any beer claiming "chocolate" in the title. The drink greets with chocolate near the front of the tongue, but in the back of the mouth there is the roasted coffee beans aspect. It turns bitter as it goes down. I will get this again next Christmas.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 02:37:07 | More by TeamMathis

DrewSnyc667

Massachusetts

2.18/5  rDev -39.4%
look: 1.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 1.75 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12 oz bottle into a pint glass

A - Pours like dark muddy pond water that isn't that appealing. No head at all, dark and flat, cant see through it

S - Sweet roasted malts

T - Artificial toasty sweetness and the chocolate tastes like bad yoo-hoo, bitter

M - Feels flat, nothing there

O - Pass on this one

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 00:08:59 | More by DrewSnyc667

Treyliff

West Virginia

3.68/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

A- pours pitch black with a small light tan head that reduces quickly leaving no lace.

S- slightly artificial candy-like chocolate syrup, vanilla bean, grainy malt and so e graham cracker

T- sweet and chocolaty, just a trace of roasted notes, some cocoa. Finish is sweet with a bit if a grainy malt and chocolate linger

M- medium body and carbonation, creamy and velvety mouthfeel, finishes slightly thin and watery

O- simplistic stout, yet very drinkable. Pretty one dimensional but makes a good dessert beer that isn't too heavy. Reminds me of a poor mans Sam Smith Chocolate Stout.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2013 03:14:00 | More by Treyliff

fx20736

New York

4.19/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4

poured from a 12 oz bottle into a nonic, served at room temp.

oil black with a billowing nougat head

aroma: chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate. Chocolate brownies, chocolate syrup, chocolate malt. the malt sneaks in at the end is a nice toasty chocolate malt.

mouthfeel: pretty thin, too thin for the style.

taste: rich and malty with lots of chocolate and just a touch of hops for bitterness.

notes: decent, tasty, easy drinking, great aroma. This beer would benefit from a bigger mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2013 01:29:22 | More by fx20736

hornsup

Virginia

4/5  rDev +11.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle with date poured into a Sam Adams perfect pint

A: Poured a deep, dark brown color with a weakish khaki head that keeps a thin layer on the top while you drink

S: Smells like roasted malts, nesquik powder and dark chocolate..not much else

T: Tastes like a melted milk chocolate bar, not overly sweet, slight bitterness and metallic finish at the back end. Very chocolate forward, no booze

M: Thin mouthfeel, no stout characteristic to it but it is refreshingly smooth

O: Overall, this beer achieves its goal. Its a light stout with a very chocolate forward profile, no booze to make it appealing to more than beer connoisseurs and its perfect as a dessert substitute. People have been too harsh on this. Ratings would be higher if people just considered what it set out to do. But...what can you expect of people

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2013 04:37:03 | More by hornsup

hosehead83

Ohio

3.31/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Poured from a 12oz. bottle into a standard pint glass.
Black in color with a nice cap of tan foam.
Aroma-Dark malt and cocoa powder
Taste-Herbal hop note, cocoa powder, dry finish. Flavors are not quite in harmony as they seem to exist seperately without complementing each other. Interesting but unbalanced.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2013 16:21:17 | More by hosehead83

VoodooBear

Puerto Rico

3.19/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Presentation: 12 oz. brown bottle with the "Best by" date printed on the neck. Served in a pint glass.

Appearance: Deep, dark brown, almost black color. Develops a half finger dark tan head that fizzles out into thin ring. Leaves some nice, thick, lacing.

Smell: Smells of chocolate with a hint of roasted malt.

Taste: Almost a mirror image of the smell. Mainly chocolate with some roasted malt in the background a bit of bitterness to balance it all out. Not extremely flavorful or complex, but very satisfying and interesting.

Mouthfeel: Deep and rich, very nice texture. Full bodied with little carbonation.

Overall: "Less is more", pretty much defines this beer. The chocolate hint and roasted malt presence make it very easy to enjoy and a perfect brew for a cold night with some type of chocolate dessert. It gets creamier and the chocolate flavor is more pronounced as it warms, so let it sit at room temperature for a bit the enjoy it better.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2013 08:12:43 | More by VoodooBear

mcerka

New Jersey

1.7/5  rDev -52.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 3 | overall: 1

Bud Light mixed with NESQUICK. Also on the bottle stating "Ale with """NATURAL""" chocolate flavor. Anything that says natural is not quite natural. Limited Edition... thank christ. It's a good thing this beer was free because if I would have spent money on it i would spit it in the closes face near me.

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2013 22:32:40 | More by mcerka

cbutova

Massachusetts

3.53/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 2.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A- Pint glass pour from a bottle with a black body. Light brown head forms to about a finger in size but doesn't retain well at all. The cap had a bubbly texture and leaves only a thin ring behind. Lacing is pretty much non-existent for me.

S-Reminds me of chocolate milk in a way with a sweet milk chocolate note coming off strong. Besides that just some roasted cracked grains and a slight dark fruit hint. Mostly the milk chocolate.

T- Follows the nose with the massive amount of milk chocolate. Reminds me a bit of Choklat in a way, a rich sweet cocoa/chocolate milk like flavor. Deeply roast grains and dark fruit besides that. Some burnt hints as well.

MF- Creamy and foamy overall feel but a bit on the thin side with lower end carbonation. Burnt and roast bitterness in the finish.

Very rich flavors, especially of decadent milk chocolate. The body isn't as good as it could be but a pretty good beer nonetheless.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2013 05:20:29 | More by cbutova

AnitaBrewski

Massachusetts

3.78/5  rDev +5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

This is a really lovely beer, I especially love that chocolatey aroma that hits you immediately upon cracking the cap off. One thing that makes Harpoon beers so great is the intersection of great beer and not too expensive. There are definitely better chocolate stouts but they tend to cost more, and for a local Bostonian, ya gotta love a good Harpoon. They need to start serving Harpoon Chocolate Stout at the party at the end of the Brewery to Brewery 148 mile bicycle ride!

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2013 01:25:22 | More by AnitaBrewski

angrybabboon

Rhode Island

2.25/5  rDev -37.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Cheers to Goblinmunkey7 for giving me a bottle of this to review after I drank a bottle and complained about it

Consumed 1/23/13

Appearance: Dark brown with a small, light tan head - fades quickly to virtually nothing, leaves a tiny ring, a few spots of lacing

Smell: Doesn't particularly smell like beer, smells more like someone tried to dissolve some tootsie rolls in vodka - overall, it smells like a cheap, chocolate liqueur - oddly artificial aroma, like an artificial chocolate syrup - sweet and sugary - some dark malts, some roast in the background

Taste: Slightly more pleasant than the aroma - artificial chocolate syrup - sweet and sugary - kind of tastes like I would imagine imitation Tootsie Rolls taste like (if there is such a thing) - a strange alcohol flavor that cannot be explained by the ABV - some roast in the background, minimal bitterness, mostly just sweet

Mouthfeel: On the heavy side of thin, slick, minimal carbonation, sticky in a strange way

Overall: A great example of how not to make a chocolate stout

As I mentioned above, this kind of tastes like a watered-down chocolate liqueur with some overly sweet Tootsie Roll extract syrup. It's not the worst beer I've ever tasted (far from it), and it's not the worst thing I've ever tasted from Harpoon (I'm looking at you, Golden Wizard), but it's remarkably not good.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2013 05:46:55 | More by angrybabboon

fstorey

Connecticut

3.13/5  rDev -13.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

A - Opaque with thin head that quickly dissipates.

S - dominated by chocolate but with milder coffee and hops aroma

T - Initially mild malt and chocolate with a hoppy bitter finish.

M - a little thinner than I expected with more carbonation than typical for a stout.

O - I think the amount of chocolate was just right, but a little short on maltiness in the taste and mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2013 03:42:27 | More by fstorey

superspak

Michigan

3.68/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 ounce bottle into pint glass, best before 3/15/2013. Pours clear almost pitch black color with a 1 finger fairly dense mocha head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Spotty soapy lacing clings to the glass. Aromas of big milk chocolate, chocolate syrup, toffee, vanilla bean, light roasted malt, caramel, and light coffee. Very nice aromas with big chocolate notes and nice balance. Taste of milk chocolate, vanilla bean, caramel, toffee, roasted malt, toast, coffee, and light cream. Slight coffee bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of milk chocolate, vanilla, caramel, toast, toffee, roasted malt, and coffee on the finish for a good bit. Good flavor balance with a fair amount of robustness; but it feels a little watered down for a stout; zero cloying flavors are present after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a fairly creamy and slick mouthfeel that is ok; feels a bit thin. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a good sweet stout. Fairly robust with nice chocolate dessert flavor; and very smooth to drink. A nicely enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2013 05:34:33 | More by superspak

Minkybut

Virginia

4.28/5  rDev +18.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I poured this exception beer into my tumbler at 45 degrees. The beer was black and poured a rich full head that was also very dark. WOW!, the smell was supreme chocolate with a hazel nut smell. The taste was terrific, nutty, chocolate warmth that is the best beer I have tasted this winter. I would certainly buy again. Yummy!

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2013 19:41:37 | More by Minkybut

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Soft black color. The head fell a bit fast. Spotty residue on the glass walls as it drinks down.

Pudding and syrup aromas to the chocolate. Very milky and rather sweet. Nicely aromatic but beside mentioning some roasty coffee notes, is a little one-note. Still smells very appetizing.

Nice milky flavors of chocolate and chocolate liqueur and even artificial chocolate. Picked up some bitterness from the dark specialty malts. Not cereal-like because the malt sugars caramelized and transformed as they should have. Nice execution, but I'd be curious to see the bill of ingredients used and the way they were added. Some coffee, milk caramel, and earthy notes.

Mouthfeel suffers a bit from a thinner body. The carbonation is nice, however, and saves the day. Very drinkable.

I think Harpoon makes a good chocolate stout. I enjoyed it last year, and I'm doing the same right now.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2013 03:55:38 | More by thecheapies

DavidS88

Massachusetts

4.23/5  rDev +17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Here's another great one from Harpoon. Found in the Wintry Mix variety pack, Chocolate Stout is a velvety, bittersweet brew. Poured out of a 12oz bottle, this American stout is a beautiful straight-up black; none of this dark brown, translucent stuff you see from other stouts. The one knock I have to offer this beer is that there was a tiny brown head on top that disappeared nearly immediately with practically no lacing on the glass and a slight ring of foam that touched the edges of the glass. It smells like a freshly unwrapped piece of dark chocolate, bitter on the nose with maybe even some hints of dried fruit. The taste is largely the same as the nose with lots of bitter dark chocolate and is really, amazingly smooth for a malty stout. Truth be told, it's not nearly as bitter as some stouts that I have had, and that may be why I like it so much. Kick back and enjoy one of these with dessert during those cold winter months and it will warm you right up.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2012 02:30:45 | More by DavidS88

JasonL

4.73/5  rDev +31.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I don't care what the critics say but this is a extremely nice stout. The chocolate is a bit overwhelming but I like that in a stout. The mouthfeel lingers and is pleasant, from a stout lover I give this two thumbs up. It is not overwhelmed with high alcohol volume so it is a great fast sipper and has wonderful flavors.

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2012 17:38:33 | More by JasonL

abeerwiseguy

Texas

2.5/5  rDev -30.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

I picked up several different Harpoon brews as part of a mixed six pack from my favorite beer mart. The label reflected Chocolate Stout but had no ABV listed.

Poured into a pint bar g;ass from a 12 oz bottle almost black with two fingers of thick brownish head that dissipated rapidly.

Had good aromas of coffee with a hint of chocolate.

Unfortunately the flavor profile left me cold. Had an almost resinous taste with hints of bitter malts and chocolate.

This beer lacks flavors and any real body that one must associate with this style. Had a very weak finish with low carbonation and no real aftertaste. Overall not a good experience. Just to make sure this was not a skunked bottle I had another before I wrote this review and had the same experience.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 18:30:09 | More by abeerwiseguy

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +20.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A Bottle into a Harpoon curved type of pint glass. Picked this up as a single, never had it before, never knew it existed.

Harpoon Chocolate Stout has a black look to it. It's a stout so that's expected. Anywho, the liquid is black and the cap up top is a half inch of dark tannish foam leaving no lace on the glass. The liquid looks dead after a while but some swirls bring it back. This smells straight up like chocolate syrup. It reminds me of a less Diabetic form of Southern Tier Choklat. Basically, it smells like chocolate and some roasted malt, nothing else, a str8 up chocolate stout, no bells or whistles. Taste is chocolate, mixed in with slight grain notes and a roasty finish reminding me of a light porter, even though this remains in the stout category. Body is a step below medium with a light but felt carb. Truthfully, I could drink a lot of this and still like it after a while. The body is at a level where long sips or even chugging is possible, so drinkability is quite high. This was a surprise and a treat at the same time. I see myself drinking more of this in the future willingly. Hey, what do you know, a Harpoon beer that I want to come back to. I actually prefer this over Choklat as I can drink more than 4oz's of it.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2012 21:46:51 | More by onix1agr

BWED

Pennsylvania

3.65/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a pint from a 12 oz. bottle.

A- I'm going to get a little abstract on this: burnt marshmallow - It's nearly all black, but it just has that tiny trace of brown that makes me think of that marshmallow I was too late in blowing out. Head is quite tan, almost brown, and creamy. Two finger, and gave a about two seconds of a little cascade before turning into the full head. Lacing comes about during the drinking process, but dissipates to a few mere specks on the inside of the glass by the end.

S- Dark chocolate, not too sweet, a tiny bit bitter, and roasted coffee.

T- About the same as the smell, semisweet baking chocolate, mocha. More bitter than other chocolates I've had, but not in a hoppy bitter kind of way. Hops seem to be very minimal.

M- The mouthfeel kind of killed it for me. I like my stouts fairly thick, and my chocolate stouts pretty creamy, but this was almost watery. Very light, with light carbonation.

O- This is one of the most flavorful chocolate stouts I have had, and I really like it because it isn't too sweet. It reminds me of stealing those slightly bitter chocolate chips from my mom when she was baking cookies. But I docked on the mouthfeel. It was way lighter than I expected, and just didn't feel like a stout. If it was thicker, this would be one of my favorites. Of course I would get this again, but I can only imagine what it would taste like with that creamy yummy feel...

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2012 03:38:55 | More by BWED

BenjaminBlondbeard

New York

3.68/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A hard pour generates a 1 - 1/2 inch head of dark mocha bubbly foam. The head doesn't stick around long, but the thin honeycomb lacing does in the beginning. There is little to no light coming though. Hold the glass up the a bulb, and I can see some rich brown hues amidst the blackness.

It smells strongly of chocolate, with a little coffee, and mocha notes as well.

It tastes like rich chocolate! It is on the lighter end of a full bodied brew. The carbonation breaks up the thick beer, and some hop bitters weigh in to balance the richness of the roasted malts turning a milk chocolate more towards a dark chocolate. It leaves a sweet and creamy aftertaste and texture in the mouth, and lingering chocolate flavors.

This is a delicious chocolate stout that is not too heavy, nor overpowering in it's flavors. I generally prefer the intensity of some other heavier, more bitter, dark chocolate, and coffee stouts, but still liked this rich brew. Easily drinkable, and enjoyable. A bottle, or few, would make a nice end of the evening treat.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2012 02:31:42 | More by BenjaminBlondbeard

StonedTrippin

Colorado

4.18/5  rDev +16.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

if you are a chocoholic, this is your beer. probably the most chocolatey of any beer ive ever tasted. its impressively chocolately! wow. the pour is dense and black, a lot like hersheys syrup in both color and viscosity, small tan head fades fast. the nose is not as sweet as it should be for how much chocolate is the in the flavor, but you know its coming from one whiff. so rich and decadent, like dessert. the flavor is sweet milk chocolate all the way through, like a candy bar really, but not offensively sugary at all, its very palatable, i love the dark roasted malts with the gourmet chocolate flavor. its a really awesome holiday beer, it blows people away everytime i share this with anyone, the chocolate is just so intense. huge body, sticky thick, with mellow carbonation but it doesnt feel heavy. this is the highlight of the harpoon winter pack, and a very very unique and special beer. a solid A in my book.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2012 18:15:09 | More by StonedTrippin

GeckoPunk

Connecticut

3.65/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Bottle poured into a tulip glass to review.

A - dark brown/black. Tan 1-fingerhead head with good spiderweb lacing.

S - Best part of this beer. Reminds me of a Starbucks mocha frappachino. Absolutely amazing chocolatey goodness.

T - Wish the taste were as good as the smell. You lose a lot of the chocolate taste you think it will have because of the huge complex nose it emits. Doesn't bother me drinking. With my nose in the glass, however. ;)

M - Well carbonated, but not over the top like the Pepe Nero I had the other week. (Apples vs Oranges)... Moderate mouthfeel. Not too light or heavy, nor too syruppy or dry.

O - If the beer tasted as good as it smelled, I probably would have rated it around a 4...

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 23:31:46 | More by GeckoPunk

kangarooAdam59

Maine

4.3/5  rDev +19.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Best by 2/15/2013:

Into a pint glass:

A: pitch black colored body yielding a foamy level brown head, closer to an off-white to the top of the head and gets darker closer to the body. The head is about two fingers and slowly dies to a beautiful film leaving some nice speckled lacing around the sides of the pint glass.

S: roasty sweet between milk chocolate, coffee and malts.

T: exactly the same with a bit of light vanilla as the beer warms.

M: medium and a bit watery, leaving nothing harsh on the tongue.

O: this was done really well for the most part, but am unsure if this is really an American Stout and could be closer to a Milk/Sweet Stout. No worries, I still liked it and would definitely come back to it.

Serving type: bottle

11-29-2012 00:53:13 | More by kangarooAdam59

ColdWaffles

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured cold from the bottle into a Samuel Smiths Tulip Pint.

Appearance: Solid black body with a nice tan head color. The head is a little underwhelming.

Smell: Enticing milk chocolate smell. Somewhere between a nice truffle and chocolate milk. Probably the best part of the beer, and not because the beer is bad, but because the scent is awesome.

Taste: Given the smell, this is a little bit of a letdown. The chocolate doesn't come out nearly as much in the flavor. The first major pickup was something like coffee with french vanilla creamer. A little bit of chocolate picks up, and the flavor ends up similar to that of Dunkin Donuts' Dunkachino (half coffee, half hot chocolate). The aftertaste oddly reminded me of cola, perhaps as a result of the carbonation. Found that the chocolate came out a little more as it sat. Overall pretty good, if a little disappointing.

Mouthfeel: Not a particularly thick stout. A little more carbonated than I would have liked.

Overall: I really did enjoy this beer, though I wish it lived up to that awesome smell. A nice piece in the winter sampler I got.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2012 04:58:46 | More by ColdWaffles