Black Hole Sun - Black Market Brewing Co.

kojevergas

California

2.55/5  rDev -35.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

22 fl oz brown glass bottle with standard pressure cap purchased for $9.49 and served into a New Belgium goblet in me gaff in low altitude Los Feliz, California. 15% ABV confirmed. Expectations are above average; the lad at the store I got this at was a good salesman.

Served a bit warmer than refrigerator cold. Side-poured with standard vigor as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

Cracked the cap without issue. No carbonation surging or other problems. Just a satisfying ksshh.

As I poured, it became obvious no head was going to form, so I increased the vigor of my pour considerably.

A: Pours a one finger beautiful rich tan colour head of great cream and thickness and decent retention for the high ABV (about forty seconds). Body colour is a solid black. Not quite a pitch or jet black. Opaque. Nontransparent. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show.

Sm: Chocolate, a hint of roast, dark malts, some coffee, and caramel. A pretty standard aroma for a good beer in the style. Nothing strikes me as special or unique, but so far so good. An average strength aroma. No yeast or alcohol comes through.

T: Chocolate, cream, overdone coffee, stunted dark malts, roast, and an obnoxious finish resembling curdled cream. Somewhat acrid throughout. Hopping is a bit aggressive for the style yet adds little of value to the profile. Imbalanced. Not at all subtle. Not very complex either - especially not for the style. It's deeply flawed, yet strangely, little alcohol comes through. No yeast comes through. I'm going to let it warm, but it's very unimpressive so far. Too stale and bitter.

Mf: Smooth, wet, thick. Decent carbonation. Sticky. Too present on the palate. Wrong for the style. Needs coarseness, dryness, and cream. Doesn't suit the flavours all that much at all.

Dr: It does hide its ABV fairly well, I'll give it that. But's too horribly imbalanced to be a success within the style. Feels like an undercooked garage homebrew attempt at the style. I wouldn't bother with this again. It's probably better on draught.

Low C-

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2012 05:47:25 | More by kojevergas

drgonzo2k2

California

4/5  rDev +0.5%

05-18-2013 15:19:23 | More by drgonzo2k2

penginpunk

California

4.75/5  rDev +19.3%

04-27-2013 09:22:02 | More by penginpunk

JustXBeer

California

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

03-13-2013 14:38:43 | More by JustXBeer

sil1

California

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

02-16-2013 22:30:21 | More by sil1

Wardo

Illinois

4.24/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Wow! I don't take the time to review a lot of beers, but thought a review was due for Black Hole Sun. Living in Chicago, my "go to" stout, and the beer by which I compare all other stouts is GI's BCBS. While lacking the depth, complexity, and balance of a BCBS, for the price, Black Hole Sun is really something. It's a HUGE beer, so set some time aside for this one. Speaking of time, this beer has great potential in the cellar - it's pretty hot out of the gate.

Creamy, malty, and fairly sweet (with some heat). While it doesn't have the balance or depth of BCBS or some of the other top-shelf ba stouts, I think time is going to be very good to this one and look forward to seeing how this develops over the next several years. I think it could be spectacular.

Overall, this is a Damn Good beer!

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2013 20:11:43 | More by Wardo

FosterJM

California

4.34/5  rDev +9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

1698th Review on BA
Bottle to Black Market Pint
22oz

Shared by Vince at Steve's house

App- Holy hell this is black as shit! I will say almost the darkest stout I've seen. Good dense center, black color with only a slight edge color reduction. A few bubbles but not a head really. A few dots of cling.

Smell- This is a good deep aromatic stout. Even in a pint glass the rich malts are there and balanced against a bakers/dark chocolate with a small booze. Very rich and decadent on the nose.

Taste- WTF!! How can 15% be this smooth. It's very creamy and dark chocolate forward. The rich malts are sitting there just being mellow and paired with a whip cream like flavor. Huge chocolate for days. Jesus this was good.

Mouth- A large and full body with a low and creamy carbonation. Residual, malts, chocolate and whip cream like flavors.

Drink- well 15% is really FN good! So well layered and balanced and not boozy at all! I have no idea what they did, but damn it was good.

Serving type: bottle

01-21-2013 22:26:27 | More by FosterJM

largadeer

California

3.5/5  rDev -12.1%

01-14-2013 06:58:43 | More by largadeer

CheapBeerBuzz

California

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

01-13-2013 06:56:36 | More by CheapBeerBuzz

westcoastbeerlvr

California

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%

01-13-2013 04:53:15 | More by westcoastbeerlvr

antibeersnob

4.15/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Dude this stuff is fantastic! Big beer flavor, aroma and alcohol. This is by far my favorite from Black Market. This beer is not for the timid. There is a lot of booze flavor in this one, which I quite enjoy. When I drink an Imperial Stout, I want it to be big and bold and Black Hole Sun is all of those.

This is a must for the big Stout lover.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2012 19:04:43 | More by antibeersnob

IvoryFoxhole

Virginia

3.65/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 ounce bottle. 15% ABV. Please inform my next of kin.

A: Pours black as advertised, though not quite as imposing as the DFH Miles Davis. Not much in the way of head or lacing, thin cap of brown foam.

S: Sweet malts, coffee predominate. Smells sweet.

T: Coffee, some chocolate, quite sweet. Balance isn't quite there, so alcohol comes through as well.

M: Full-bodied with prevalent alcohol heat on the finish; it's incredibly difficult to balance 15% and they didn't pull it off.

O: Quite an experience, a definite sippin' beer. Worth a try if you like full-bodied stouts. Somewhat reiminiscent of the old Sam Adams Triple Bock, but not there with the balance or taste.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2012 17:56:52 | More by IvoryFoxhole

Halcyondays

California

4.03/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

22 oz. bomber,

A: Pours as black as an Alaskan winter night. Black Hole, they weren't kidding. Mild cap of brown foam, some spotty lace. Definitely an imposing look.

S: Big right from the first smell. Lots of nuttiness, walnuts. Dark chocolate syrup and molasses. Lots of sweet dark malt.

T: Dark chocolate for days, lots of coffee ice cream flavour. Endless mocha. Small hint of char on the back end. This tastes like heavy malt syrup, no real hop character.

M: Extremely full-bodied, long sugary aftertaste of heavy malt which surprisingly never gets cloying. Lush, creamy, only a mild booze character which is impressive on a beer this big. It does get spirituous in the finish, but this is quite pleasant.

O: I'd love to see what 2-5 years of aging does to this beast, but I enjoy what it's doing now. It reminds me a lot of Old Viscosity, except it's even bigger than that beer which is a little crazy. Price is very good, all around a tasty big stout, I liked it quite a bit. This not a beer that will blow your mind, but for a huge stout that's fun to drink this young, go for it.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2012 04:15:48 | More by Halcyondays

funkel81

California

3.25/5  rDev -18.3%

11-03-2012 17:04:58 | More by funkel81

Vermonthiker

Vermont

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

10-24-2012 10:28:27 | More by Vermonthiker

alecvdpoel

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%

10-23-2012 23:32:43 | More by alecvdpoel

Retsinis

California

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

10-22-2012 22:17:18 | More by Retsinis

vurt

California

4.03/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bomber purchased at Vendome Liquors (Toluca Lake), poured a few ounces at a time into a Bruery snifter.

Appearance:
Heavy, oily, and bible black with burnt umber highlights where the beer meets the glass. A good swirl yields a half-assed skin of mocha colored foam which quickly disappears and leaves stray bubbles behind. This beer coats the glass and the viscosity hints at the huge mouthfeel to come.

Aroma:
Massive burnt sugar, tangy roasted coffee, and high cacao-percentage dark chocolate, all on top of a sturdy foundation of concentrated dark fruits: mostly raisin, fig, and prune. Oh, and alcohol. Tons of it.

Taste:
Sweet chocolate right up front, a combination of creamy milk chocolate and fruity dark chocolate. Coffee with cream right behind that, followed by several kinds of rich malty sweetness: caramel, toffee, a touch of molasses and a slight saltiness. Intense prune and fig and blackcurrant and alcohol-soaked raisin flavors underneath it all. The long-lasting finish is dark chocolate, Oreo crumbs, alcohol, and some Kahlua, and it lasts and lasts. A bit of salty smokiness at the very end.

Mouthfeel:
Full-bodied, and no lie. Viscous and oily texture with low carbonation that provides a welcome bite. Serious alcohol warmth.

Overall:
Let's not mince words: this beer is a BEAST. Huge, intense, and so much better than the last music-themed bruiser from Black Market (the hot mess known as Quadrophenia).The dark chocolate and intense fruitiness remind me of Dark Lord, but without that beer's soy sauce/refined white sugar character. The alcohol flavor is obtrusive and just plain rude. A fine and massive example of a Russian imperial stout, and one of the better non-barrel-aged stouts I've had in a while. Age it if you have the patience; this one is going to be untamed for a long time to come. Approach with caution.

Serving type: bottle

10-19-2012 06:23:14 | More by vurt

gregmoscetti

California

4.15/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

The nose is sweet, oaky and toasty. Reminiscent of Parabola. Taste follows suit but is DEFINITELY hot. The taste is sweet and chocolaty. Some light wood and vanilla. Tollhouse cookie dough. A year or 3 in the cellar would make this excellent. Mouthfeel is creamy and full.

Overall is a 4, but when you consider the price in comparison to -bal arms race, I cant help but love it a little more.

Serving type: on-tap

10-19-2012 04:07:39 | More by gregmoscetti