Darkness - Surly Brewing Company

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1,537 Ratings

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rAvg: 4.5
pDev: 10%
Reviews: 698
Hads: 839

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Brewed by:
Surly Brewing Company

Minnesota, United States

Style | ABV
Russian Imperial Stout | 10.30% ABV

Availability: Fall. bottle (521), on-tap (163), growler (11), cask (3).

Notes:
Labels:

2007-Grim Reaper
2008-Devil
2009-Mummy
2010-Vampire
2011-Zombie
2012 - Werewolf

View: Beers (31) | Events (0)

Reviews

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Reviews by davey101:

davey101

Connecticut

4.5/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2011 vintage, Zombie label. Reviewed: 06-04-2012, almost 8 months old.

750 ml red waxed bottle into a brandy snifter. Served at cellar temperature.

A - Pitch black body that shows show red tints when the glass gets low enough. Perfect dark khaki two finger high head. Moderate lacing and retention. Damn near perfect. 4.5/5

S - Amazingly decadent burnt dark fruits, almost quad like but backed up with some amazing stout aromas. Cocoa powder, vanilla, and coffee beans. 4.0/5

T - Rich and smooth milk chocolate, fruity red wine notes, molasses, brown sugar, vanilla, coffee and some light licorice. Very smooth with all of these flavors blending together perfectly. Aftertaste is a bit bitter. 4.5/5

M - No alcohol present, even at room temperature. Medium to heavy bodied with some lively carbonation. Somewhat syrupy and coating. 4.0/5

O - This is the best RIS and certainly the best non barrel aged stout I have tried. Thats probably due to my love of quads and dark fruits which this stout has on full display. For me there has always been three icons of the big waxed stout world. Abyss, Darklord, and Darkness. The Abyss is roasty and tobaco rich, Darklord is an overtly sweet vanilla bomb, and Darkness is strong on the dark fruits. This is just about perfect for me. 4.5/5 (4.45 score)

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2012 vintage, Werewolf label. Reviewed: 12-23-2012, almost 2 months old.

750 ml red waxed bottle into a Founders 15th anny glass. Served at cellar temperature.

A - Pours a pitch black body. Two fingers of light mocha foam from the pour settles into a one finger lasting cap that looks like the head of a latte. Swirling creates a thick wall of lacing that cascades down leaving behind strings of foam. Absurd retention level. 5.0/5

S - Dark fruits, brightly roasted malt, espresso beans, and vanilla. Powdery chocolate and molasses. Sweet and savory. 4.0/5

T - Rich dark chocolate and sweet milk chocolate, roast and char, espresso, molasses, and some piney hops. Long and harsh finish that's bitter and boozy. The aftertaste is just phenomenal though. Vanilla rich fudge and dark fruit. 4.0/5

M - For being only 10% abv this beer feels MUCH larger. Thick and syrupy, very coating and rich. Perfect dessert beer. 4.5/5

O - Still a phenomenal beer (that I'd chose over Abyss and Darklord) but I'm afraid I'm just not a huge fan of this beer when its on the fresher side. The hops are present and I just wish the pine and citric notes would take a back seat to the rich chocolate and dark fruits. 4.0/5

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2012 02:14:14 | More by davey101