Tokyo Black - Yo-Ho Brewing Company

vikingmike

Ontario (Canada)

4.85/5  rDev +28.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Midnight black, even when held up to light. Beautiful, chocolate coloured head that gets whiter as it reaches the top. Gorgeous

Smell: Roast coffee and chocolate

Taste: Wow. Such complexity with such a low ABV...I'm really impressed. Initial notes of dark chocolate and espresso. Fades into roasted hazelnuts. Finishes with molasses and smoke.

Mouthfeel: Light and smooth

Drinkability: This beer is simply awesome. I wish it were more widely available in Japan. I'd put this in my top 3 favorite Japanese beers, as well as my top 3 porters worldwide.

Serving type: can

11-09-2008 13:03:52 | More by vikingmike

TokyoCO

Colorado

3.73/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a can into a goblet.

A: Black, slight light penetrance on edges, foamy head.

S: Malts, light smell of coffee, hints of dark chocolate.

T: Very creamy, tastes (coffee, dark chocolate, smoke, malts) are subtle but well balanced. Smoke taste really comes through in the finish. Drinks very easily.

M: Creamy! Very easy drinking, expected from a 5% beer.

O: My first Japanese craft beer! It's good, not overly complex or tasteful but an easy drinking porter. Smoke taste in the finish makes it above average for me!

Serving type: can

05-13-2013 06:55:43 | More by TokyoCO

acjones

Japan

3.75/5  rDev -0.5%

05-13-2013 03:41:53 | More by acjones

Poupae

Thailand

3.75/5  rDev -0.5%

03-13-2013 03:07:28 | More by Poupae

t0rin0

California

3.25/5  rDev -13.8%

03-07-2013 15:02:09 | More by t0rin0

popery

California

3.29/5  rDev -12.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Pours coffee black, maybe a shade lighter. Head is soapy, beige and pretty big but fades quickly. The aroma is mostly cocoa with touches of mocha, roast and a mild twang of acidity. Taste is sweet with more simple chocolate flavor and finishes with a fairly assertive coffee/roast bitterness. The coffee flavor is a bit stale. The acidity comes through a bit in the taste, as well. Mouthfeel is somewhat creamy, but it could use more body. It’s a decent porter but nothing special and certainly not worth the price, at least here in the US.

Serving type: can

03-02-2013 06:56:15 | More by popery

jk3

New York

3.5/5  rDev -7.2%

02-14-2013 02:07:07 | More by jk3

sukwonee

Washington

3.25/5  rDev -13.8%

01-24-2013 04:55:32 | More by sukwonee

oberon

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -0.5%

01-19-2013 10:25:18 | More by oberon

pin

Australia

3.5/5  rDev -7.2%

01-19-2013 10:22:21 | More by pin

YamagamiTravis

Japan

4/5  rDev +6.1%

01-18-2013 13:58:36 | More by YamagamiTravis

joecast

Australia

3.71/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Nice looking can. Nice looking beer. Pours with a viscous character with a black liquid and thin light tan head.

Interesting doughy aroma. Really like getting ready to bake some bread and some ground up heavily kilned malt is mixed in.

Mellow taste. Little astringency or bitterness to upset the smoothness but manages to remain very drinkable with light sweetness.

Not quite up there with the best of the style but still a very well made and enjoyable beer.

Serving type: can

01-16-2013 10:22:46 | More by joecast

BS-

4.48/5  rDev +18.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a highball glass

A: Absolutely black with a thick foamy mocha head and great lacing.
S: Very deep and roasty malts.A touch of bitter chocolate and slightly burnt coffee, but mostly deeply roasted malts.
T: Malty, roasty and earthy upfront, but a very distinct acidity comes in towards the mid-palate. It kinda took me by surprise. It’s almost a dark fruit-y, tart-ish kind of presence almost leaning towards overly ripe cherries. I did not find it all that pleasant initially, but it grew on me after a few sips. The finish is roasty and bitter with a nice maltiness that I love so much in stouts.
M: Mouthfeel is surprisingly light. I expected it to be creamier and fuller. It is extremely smooth though.
O: Very enjoyable. I would definitely have this again. Amazingly, it packs all that flavour in a 5% porter.

Serving type: can

12-28-2012 05:59:00 | More by BS-

lacqueredmouse

Australia

4.38/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

350ml can purchased from Slowbeer in Melbourne. I love beer in cans. It's hard to tell its exact volume as almost all of the writing is in dense Japanese, but it's hidden there when you look.

Pours a very deep roasty black-brown, with a mildly frothed head of mocha that dissipates to a very thin film. Nice fine messy lace. Carbonation is quite fine, but the body is relatively light, meaning it sluices through quickly. Overall, it's a very decent looking brew.

Nose is also very pleasant, with a roasty toasted bite and a mellow chocolate or buttered brioche sweetness. Some heft in the aroma, meaning it stays very nice and rich. It's a very nice smelling, if not overly complex nose.

Taste is excellent: solid roasted basis, with a clear, rounded fullness to the palate, lending some smoky coffee, earthy spices and even a savoury umami character. Lovely stuff. The finish is really nice and long, and maintains a decent sweetness right to the back where it tastes like a crumbling mound of dark demerara sugar.

Feel is light but solid, and certainly full for a beer that's relatively low in ABV: pretty much spot-on for this style and flavour profile.

Overall, wow—I'm very impressed indeed. I wasn't expecting this to be as good as it is. It's really tasty, drinkable and flavoursome, but manages to stick really well within the pleasant mild, roasted genre of the porter. Really excellent, well-made stuff.

Serving type: can

11-27-2012 08:30:52 | More by lacqueredmouse

dgilks

Australia

3.85/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Black with a creamy tan head. Good head retention.

Roasty with a light earthiness. Nice coffee notes. Very good.

Smoky and roasty with a big earthiness. Not all that fruity but it works well together. Some bitterness and cocoa.

Medium-light body with moderately-high carbonation. Good.

A really solid Porter. Lovely flavour and a rounded character that brings it all together.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2012 04:43:22 | More by dgilks

sneaks2210

New York

3.25/5  rDev -13.8%

11-21-2012 19:08:58 | More by sneaks2210

007Tokyo

2.25/5  rDev -40.3%

11-08-2012 12:04:58 | More by 007Tokyo

ADZA

Australia

3.5/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a very dark kola hue which leaves a creamy mocha laced two finger head that stays and leaves heaps of clingy lacing,the smell is dark roasted malts,cooking chocolate,dark chocolate,tobacco and dark coffee,the mouthfeel is just over light bodied and well carbonated with tastes of dark roasted chocolate malts,bitter black coffee,earthy hops,dark chocolate and finished with a cappicino bittersweetness and overall its alright and easy enough to drink but nothing outstanding cheers.

Serving type: can

10-28-2012 03:51:45 | More by ADZA

gpogo

California

4.1/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Black body, tan head. Head faded to a ring.

A- Sweet roasted grain. As it warms chocolate comes out with very faint dark fruit aromas.

T- Initial sweetness with a bitterness throughout. The bitterness really complements the chocolate flavor, almost like you are eating some bitter dark chocolate. Finishes with a roasty bitterness and a light sweetness that sticks around.

M- Medium body, low carbonation.

D- Honestly I grabbed this beer due to the can. I'm impressed with the flavor, I found the aroma to be a bit bland. Seems like something I could easily drink two of in a session.

Serving type: can

10-18-2012 04:47:29 | More by gpogo

oline73

Maryland

3.4/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from the can into a standard pint glass.

Appearance: Pours an opaque dark brown color with a thick layer of creamy tan head that fades to a ring around the glass.

Smell: Sweet with a lot of roasted grain. There is a mild caramel malt smell along with some dark chocolate and a touch of dark fruit.

Taste: This one was a pleasant surprise. Tons of roasted malt makes this beer stay more on the bitter side of the spectrum. There is some sweetness, but the roasty flavors win the fight. The finish is bitter from the roast.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with tingly carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: I was pretty happy with this beer, but a little more sweetness in the flavor would have put it over the top.

Serving type: can

10-08-2012 17:57:51 | More by oline73

CrazyDavros

Australia

2.95/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours black with a lasting, light tan head.
Sweet-smelling, some soy sauce shows along with roasted malt. Little else. Very faint.
Better flavours, with some spicy hops, roasted malt and liquorice. Again, quite sweet.
Carbonation is too high.
Not great.

Serving type: can

09-25-2012 03:04:59 | More by CrazyDavros

n2185

North Carolina

4/5  rDev +6.1%

08-29-2012 23:39:05 | More by n2185

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Definitely looks like a porter. Tastes like one too. Nice smoky tone on there that accents the thick malts. Smooth. That is the key word here. I think this is one of the more masterfully brewed porters I have had in quite some time. So thorough and distinct. I feel like I'm watching a master painter slowly move their brush against a canvas and admiring every inch of movement that the brush deposits paint from. This is a very nice porter and the third beer I have tried from this brewery. They have a new fan in me. Now if only I could read their website.

Serving type: can

08-05-2012 23:10:00 | More by RblWthACoz

Amalak

New York

4.1/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A. It is in fact black. Nice foamy brown head that leaves some lace.

S. Kind of smells like cardboard.

T. It's has a toffee feel to it, and that cardboard smell fits into the taste, even if mild. Interesting taste. Very nice and interesting taste. There's a candy taste to it. Kind of like root beer candy.

M. Full-bodied and tingly.

O. Interesting taste. I really like this. Not your typical porter but worth a try.

Serving type: can

06-05-2012 02:20:01 | More by Amalak

twelveinches

Washington

4/5  rDev +6.1%

05-12-2012 05:35:00 | More by twelveinches