Summit Black Ale - Summit Brewing Company

zeledonia

Minnesota

3.23/5  rDev -18%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Bottled 18 October 2011. Enjoyed 4 Feb 2012, reviewed from notes.

Pours a dark brown, clear at the edges but nearly black in the center. One finger of medium tan head, decent retention and lacing.

Smell is faint. Not much hop presence - the dark roasted malts come through clearly. But I want more; more hops, more vibrancy, more something.

Taste is a step up, but still rather flat. I get bitter coffee in the back end, boosting the mild bitterness of the hops.

Mouthfeel is decent. Medium body, enough carbonation. Not bad, not great.

I find this beer totally drinkable, but not much more than that. I don't get much from the hops, other than a medium bitterness in the taste. I'm just lukewarm about it all around.

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2012 03:56:29 | More by zeledonia

twenty5

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

05-17-2013 15:14:27 | More by twenty5

spycow

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-02-2013 04:45:12 | More by spycow

LCB_Hostage

Pennsylvania

4.6/5  rDev +16.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

served from a 12 oz. bottle into an imperial pint glass

A: Deep, dark black with so much head I thought it might be infected. Even with a glass giving and extra 8 oz. of space, it took me 10 minutes to pour this all in the glass. strong lacing throughout.

S: Had precisely the effect you want a beer's aroma to have -- an instant desire to tip it back and taste some more. A rich, heady combination of coffee, vanilla and caramel.

T: Glorious. So rich it transcended an ale and jumped straight to stout. A marvelously complex blend of coffee, vanilla and caramel with a bitter bite on the back end.

M: The head did not eat all the carbonation, which made the amazingly rich taste of this brew refreshing and surprisingly light. A heavy tingle on the tongue and a clean, crisp aftertaste.

O: I'm thoroughly disappointed to learn that this was a one-off and won't be available again. A thoroughly unique and tremendously enjoyable beer. If you happen to stumble across some left on a shelf, snap it up. The carbonation and complexity indicate it should survive some age and it's well worth trying if you haven't already had the pleasure of doing so.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2013 02:12:39 | More by LCB_Hostage

matjack85

Illinois

3.7/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I got this as part of a build-your own six pack for $9.99 at the Binny's store in Bloomingdale, IL. No freshness date.

The beer poured a very dark brown color with a huge 4-finger fast rising tan head, so be careful with the pour. Frustratingly long retention with an incredible amount of lacing on the glass.

Nice roasted malt aroma with some orange citrus in the background.

Dry cocoa powder flavor along with roasted malt and lots of citrusy orange hops.

Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. More on the dry side than sweet.

A very hoppy and bitter black ale. Decent, but not my favorite beer of this style.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2012 01:56:22 | More by matjack85

archi348

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

11-12-2012 04:50:35 | More by archi348

JJWIGHT

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

10-30-2012 05:18:48 | More by JJWIGHT

happygnome

Minnesota

3.93/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewed from tasting notes dated March 3, 2012

A: Pours a nice jet black color with about a half inch of creamy tan head that disappears slowly leaving a good amount of lacing around the edge of the glass

S: Roasted nutty and cocoa malts, piny hops balance the aroma

T: Cocoa/caramel malt sweetness in the backbone, nice piny hop bitterness.

M: Medium bodied beer with good carbonation

Overall, a real tasty brew

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2012 01:47:55 | More by happygnome

bscalt

Minnesota

4/5  rDev +1.5%

10-27-2012 06:36:31 | More by bscalt

bnes09

Illinois

4.05/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Translucent black color with brilliant ruby hues. Mountainous ivory colored head which coats the glass in creamy waves of lacing. Gorgeous beer!

Bitter pine and floral hop aroma with just a hint of roasted character.

Toasty malt in the background with a touch of roastiness. Pine and grapefruit bitterness. Great balance.

Medium bodied, dry feel, well carbonated.

Solid black ale. True to the style.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2012 02:35:09 | More by bnes09

millelacsmark

Minnesota

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

10-11-2012 22:18:28 | More by millelacsmark

stortore

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

09-09-2012 06:08:31 | More by stortore

doucmehu

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

09-08-2012 14:54:17 | More by doucmehu

kylehay2004

Florida

4/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: even with a very ginger pour this one yielded a large 5+ finger frothy off white head on a slightly hazy deep amber brown body.

S: toffee, toasted and caramel malts, with earthy hops and light coffee notes.

T: a lot sweeter than I was expecting. Caramel, toffee, some candy sugar and milk chocolate provide the sweetness while a smokey and coffee ground flavor provides bitterness in the flavor. If you want to search out some hops they mostly provide earthy notes.

M: medium body and moderate to high carbonation.

Overall: this one is pretty complex with extremes of sweetness and bitterness coming together to make a surprisingly well balanced beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2012 23:52:14 | More by kylehay2004

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.58/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from tasting notes.

Pours out a very dark brown color with two fingers of tan head that lasts for about two minutes, and leaves behind medium amounts of lacing. Medium body and somewhat higher carbonation levels.

Smells and tastes of medium levels of straightforward resinous hopping, some roasted and caramel malts, and a garnish of smokiness. It could stand a bit more dryness towards the finish to be balanced closer to my personal palate preferences.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2012 20:08:53 | More by WastingFreetime

GarbageMan

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

08-13-2012 01:17:20 | More by GarbageMan

barczar

Kentucky

3.2/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Pours an opaque deep brown with amber highlights and a solid, half glass full of beige head that dissipates slowly, leaving spotty lacing.

Aroma is fairly complex, with chocolate, roast malt, rubber, and floral hops surfacing initially. There's a hint of hairspray.

Flavor is strange. Hairspray is again evident, perfumey, with bitter roast malt in the background, finishing fairly bitter due to hops. There's some subtle chocolate that is overpowered by the bitterness present. Grapefruit pith emerges as it warms, and more citrus and piney hops surface.

Body is moderate, with high carbonation and a fairly astringent, harsh grainy finish. Carbonation lifts the flavor right off the palate.

Originally thought this may have been a bad bottle. Took 10 minutes to pour the full beer. But it opened up as it sat for a bit. Not one I'll revisit.

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2012 05:49:08 | More by barczar

ssjkyle

Nebraska

4.5/5  rDev +14.2%

07-14-2012 22:46:02 | More by ssjkyle

MN_Beerticker

Minnesota

3.25/5  rDev -17.5%

07-13-2012 03:23:14 | More by MN_Beerticker

FreshmanPour77

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +14.2%

07-12-2012 17:14:02 | More by FreshmanPour77

frosted33

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

07-07-2012 23:05:44 | More by frosted33

smogfood

Wisconsin

3.25/5  rDev -17.5%

06-11-2012 12:33:44 | More by smogfood

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle from Friar Tuck's in Savoy, IL
No bottled on date, but "13011108" stamped on label
Poured into a standard US pint glass

Pours a fairly huge head, more than 4cm even with a modest pour, of very light tan bubbles. The head has excellent retention, reducing to a 2cm cap atop the beer and leaving excellent, thick lacing. The body is an impenetrable brown-black color with amber highlights. Carbonation is visible streaking along the sides of the glass.

Pleasantly hoppy aroma with pine resin and grapefruit atop a backbone of roasted, chocolate, and caramel malts.

Flavor is roasted malt upfront, with hop bitterness present in the back. At this point, hop flavors are a bit blurred, but when more fresh, I suspect they were pine and grapefruit influenced. Chocolate seeps through from mid-palate onwards, perhaps being most obvious between mid and late-palate. Closes out a bit watery, but leaves a solid aftertaste of bitterness and some acridness from roasted malt.

Beer is medium-bodied with medium to medium-high carbonation and a bit of wateriness around the edges. At first, this drinks too carbonated, but the levels calm down after a few minutes of resting. Resultant mouthfeel is: generally smooth and slightly watery. Closes out medium-bodied with a bit of wateriness, leading to a very dry finish.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2012 23:10:21 | More by falloutsnow

Mick-e-d

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

06-07-2012 01:16:04 | More by Mick-e-d

Kunstman

Wisconsin

4/5  rDev +1.5%

06-06-2012 03:17:16 | More by Kunstman