Black Toad Dark Ale - Black Toad Brewing Co.

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BA SCORE
81
good
-
320 Ratings

THE BROS
92
outstanding
-
read more »

rAvg: 3.58
pDev: 14.53%
Reviews: 224
Hads: 96

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Black Toad Brewing Co.
California, United States

Style | ABV
English Brown Ale | 5.30% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (224).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (1) | Events (0)

Reviews

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Reviews by baos:

baos

Indiana

4.18/5 rDev +16.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

My girlfriend bought me a six-pack of these Trader Joe's brews, and this was thrown in. I didn't expect much, but this is a good one! Pretty sure Goose Island makes this.

A: Nice brown body with one finger tan head. Pretty decent head retention and lacing.

S: Nice freshly baked brown bread. Sweet and fruity malt hints.

T: Nice fruity roasted maltiness. Like fresh baked bread. Nice hoppy dry finish. This is a good beer.

M: Not the best, but still nice.

D: A very drinkable beer. I was expecting a canned mushroom brown ale. This is way better than many of the English browns that I have tried.

Serving type: bottle

09-26-2011 05:26:10 | More by baos

More User Reviews:

WizzardOfHops

California

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

06-18-2013 08:21:23 | More by WizzardOfHops

Cyrano41

Virginia

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

06-17-2013 18:49:10 | More by Cyrano41

cfaulman

Louisiana

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

06-13-2013 04:35:53 | More by cfaulman

GabeQ

Tennessee

4/5 rDev +11.7%

06-12-2013 21:31:56 | More by GabeQ

Wedcat

California

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

06-11-2013 01:29:59 | More by Wedcat

Nunya

Ohio

2.5/5 rDev -30.2%

06-09-2013 23:28:39 | More by Nunya

damndirtyape

Ohio

3.71/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

12oz bottle served into a shaker pint glass. Part of the best before was smeared, so this is either best by 06/04/13 or 02/04/13.

Appearance: Dark brown on the table, dark ruby red to mahogany when held up to the light. Initial white head upon pouring died back to a thin white foam across the top and some thick strands of lacing here and there. So so in the foam dept, but very nice color beer.

Smell: Malt sweetness, hint of caramel, hint of metallic. Mild.

Taste: Mix of caramel malt sweetness, burnt sugar, and toasted malts up front, then moving quickly into a brown sugar middle. The finish is not very bitter, maybe just a hint of black coffee that's been on the burner too long - or very burnt malt. Not a good bitter finish, a little ashy a times, but enough to counter the sweetness that is in this beer. I have a sweet tooth and so like malt heavy beers, but this one is just a tad unbalanced in favor of malt sweetness. Tasty, just unbalanced. But probably true to style for an English Brown Ale. I just wish it had a bit more hop balance at the end.

Mouthfeel: Sticky on the teeth. Good carbonation underneath.

Overall / drinkability: One is enough for me, I could not drink another by itself. With food...maybe another one per evening, but it's still quite sweet. Might make a very interesting base for a vanilla ice cream float though. Still, a good full-flavor beer. Just make sure you're ready for the sweetness when you pop one open.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2013 23:47:49 | More by damndirtyape

Rihup

Illinois

4/5 rDev +11.7%

06-03-2013 02:13:24 | More by Rihup

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

4.11/5 rDev +14.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Black Toad Ale has a medium, cream-colored head, a dark brown (ruby, under direct light) appearance, and some splotchy bits of lacing left on the glass. The aroma is of medium-roasted barley and brown bread crust, and the taste is the same, with some underlying caramel and mild hop bitterness. Mouthfeel is light to medium, and Black Toad Ale finishes semi-dry, refreshing, and quite drinkable. Overall, this is a very good, sweet ale.

RJT

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2013 14:14:46 | More by RonaldTheriot

BreweryRun

California

3.85/5 rDev +7.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Very dark brown ale, from Trader Joe's, poured from a bottle into a tulip glass.

Smells fairly sweet, with hints of coffee and chocolate.

Taste is less sweet than the smell but not overly so. Notes of unsweetened chocolate and toasted bread. I'm enjoying it quite a bit. Sweetness comes out a little more as it warms which I'm not crazy about but still good.

A very solid brown that I would have again, great price, and easy to get a hold of.

Serving type: bottle

05-31-2013 03:53:13 | More by BreweryRun

spiatt

Ohio

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

05-26-2013 12:53:13 | More by spiatt

Drew26

Wisconsin

3.5/5 rDev -2.2%

05-19-2013 04:44:46 | More by Drew26

zonker17

Illinois

4/5 rDev +11.7%

05-18-2013 20:22:11 | More by zonker17

Zimm

New Jersey

3.75/5 rDev +4.7%

05-15-2013 17:35:45 | More by Zimm

Onenote81

North Carolina

3.56/5 rDev -0.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A friend brought a sixer of these to a get-together last night. Poured one into a snifter. Pour yielded a dark chocolate brown with a nice off-white head on top. The nose was sweet like nutty bread, brown sugar toast, and a bit of alcohol.

Moderate depth. Carbonation level is good, but there's a bit of a thin quality on the finish. Sweet nutty flavors - almond bar, chocolate malt, fresh bread. Good finish. This beer was surprising. One I'd never heard of, but a decent one I'd revisit.

[*This paired exceptionally well with a Carlos Toraño Reserva Decadéncia cigar]

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2013 19:29:09 | More by Onenote81

secondtooth

Indiana

3.49/5 rDev -2.5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a dark, tawny, murky brown. Moderate head and only a hint of lace here.

Aroma is roasty malts and a little dark fruit. I get a touch of nuttiness, too.

Taste is sweet, with a bit of roast and nuttiness. Seems to me like a brown ale with a little extra char. Easy enough to drink, but not outstanding.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2013 14:40:49 | More by secondtooth

Jomolieri

Virginia

3.88/5 rDev +8.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Amazing beer for the price... I think I paid $1.00 for this guy at trader joes. Sweet Nutty flavor with a creamy mouthfeel. Some very subtle toffee notes in there. Not overly complex in flavor but it really hits the spot if your looking for a slightly sweet smooth dark ale.

Serving type: bottle

05-06-2013 02:54:57 | More by Jomolieri