Dark Depths - Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams)

Pahn

New York

3.7/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle into Duvel tulip. Somewhat optimistically labeled "Batch 1".

Appearance: Free pour a two inch, fluffy light tan head that dissipates steadily leaving a few thick lacing arches. Pours black with redbrown highlights. Leaves elaborate, sweeping lacing.

Smell: From the bottle: Simcoe hops. In the glass: Pastry, with fruits and Simcoe. Weird, but pleasant. It's like a croissant with strawberry and grape jam, and some kind of Simcoe (sort of a dank, marijuana-y pungent hop) sauce as well.

Taste: Same weird mix of marzipan, strawberry / grape / passionfruit / peach (none of these outright, but like a blend), and simcoe hops. The difference is that in taste form it's verrry sweet.

Interesting, and points for uniqueness. Regardless of what style this wants to be though, it's just too sweet. It doesn't quite get to "unpleasant," but it's pushing its luck. 3.5 because it's doing a lot of stuff well above average (pastry malt backbone is very nice, even if it is too sweet, and the Simcoe playing nicely with it is surprising and enjoyable).

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied. Very creamy. Low side of moderate carbonation. A bit sugary.

Overall: For some palates, this beer could be a real eye opener. For me, it's pretty good, occasionally impressive, but persistently too sweet.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2012 05:47:35 | More by Pahn

henskejk

California

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

05-25-2013 16:09:55 | More by henskejk

quakeroatmealstout

New York

3.5/5  rDev -5.7%

05-24-2013 22:40:11 | More by quakeroatmealstout

Spaz7

California

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

05-24-2013 21:34:52 | More by Spaz7

jroberts8811

Missouri

3.5/5  rDev -5.7%

05-23-2013 20:52:33 | More by jroberts8811

cfitterer

Arizona

4/5  rDev +7.8%

05-21-2013 02:43:52 | More by cfitterer

xseanprimex

South Carolina

3/5  rDev -19.1%

05-20-2013 18:48:02 | More by xseanprimex

AgentMunky

Alabama

3.98/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4

Poured from a 22 ounce bottle into a DFH signature glass.

A: Four fingers of head rise and fall quickly. The beer is dark and near black.

S: It smells great!! Fruity, round, and pleasant. Chocolate, papaya, and musty old ale style yeast.

T: Delicious! Light roast, light body, heavy dark fruit (currants, blueberries, blackberries). Quite sweet. The aftertaste is a little weird. Lager yeast is...sourish? Maybe this is the citric hops (Zeus and Simcoe), actually. Odd.

M: Light and smooth.

O: This was really interesting! Worthwhile. My biggest criticism is that is gets less good the more I drink.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 04:16:12 | More by AgentMunky

jbarletto

Massachusetts

3.25/5  rDev -12.4%

05-18-2013 14:36:05 | More by jbarletto

Ajlvt

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +7.8%

05-18-2013 11:47:13 | More by Ajlvt

Beefytits4

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

05-18-2013 05:51:37 | More by Beefytits4

jharris0624

Missouri

4.25/5  rDev +14.6%

05-16-2013 05:24:09 | More by jharris0624

Zbeetleman

California

3/5  rDev -19.1%

05-16-2013 03:07:27 | More by Zbeetleman

KShophead

Kansas

4.25/5  rDev +14.6%

05-15-2013 03:19:39 | More by KShophead

harpus

Alabama

1.5/5  rDev -59.6%

05-11-2013 05:21:33 | More by harpus

eulerthegrape

California

3/5  rDev -19.1%

05-10-2013 15:51:52 | More by eulerthegrape

twenty5

Pennsylvania

3.25/5  rDev -12.4%

05-10-2013 15:03:33 | More by twenty5

tommyguz

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -19.1%

05-09-2013 02:22:53 | More by tommyguz

davemathews68

Ohio

3.5/5  rDev -5.7%

05-09-2013 01:57:09 | More by davemathews68

terence

California

2.5/5  rDev -32.6%

05-08-2013 20:33:43 | More by terence

dalepryor

Kentucky

3.5/5  rDev -5.7%

05-07-2013 20:39:29 | More by dalepryor

tubeyes

Texas

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

05-06-2013 04:19:52 | More by tubeyes

yesyouam

New York

4.03/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Samuel Adams Dark Depths is a very dark, reddish brown beer with a thick, lumpy, beige head that decorates the glass with lacing. It smells dark, roasty and kind of smokey. There's a lighter, semi-sweet malt aroma that almost smells like sorghum. There may be a hint of lemon peel. It's smooth, soft and pretty full bodied. It has a pretty neat finish and leaves the teeth a little gritty. It's a bit sweet, but less so than I'd expect from a Baltic porter. The bitterness balances it out well and hints at grass, wood and fruit. There are notes of prunes and coffee. There are a quite a few flavors going on. I'm a fan of both Baltic porters and IPAs, but this is a very strange mash up. That said, they pulled this off better than I would have imagined possible.

Serving type: bottle

05-06-2013 02:04:20 | More by yesyouam

jenray

Texas

2.5/5  rDev -32.6%

05-03-2013 14:02:16 | More by jenray

ALLMUCH

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

05-01-2013 04:24:21 | More by ALLMUCH