Bête Noire - Paddock Wood Brewing Co.

trevorwideman

Manitoba (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz bottle brought to me by demcorhip. Thanks man!

Pours an inky black, nearly opaque colour with a 1/4 inch of head, even off a hard pour. The minimal head recedes quickly and leaves just a little wet lace. Not much in the way of retention, just a few bubbles. Carbonation seems minimal. Aroma is lightly sweet with a bit of molasses, chocolate, nuts, some generic juicy fruitiness, cocoa, and roasted coffee bitterness. Great aroma.

Taste starts out rich with tons of milk chocolate flavour. There's some lactic sourness and tons of roasted coffee. A little brown sugar and herbal hops in the background. Simple but well balanced and very flavourful. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with a mild carbonation, herbal finish and nice dryness. This is a great flavourful session brew, smooth and keeps you sipping.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2008 03:17:06 | More by trevorwideman

schnarr84

Alberta (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +15.2%

12-24-2012 00:39:59 | More by schnarr84

TheBeermin

Saskatchewan (Canada)

2.5/5  rDev -32.2%

11-03-2012 21:06:18 | More by TheBeermin

Ivanhoes_Backpack

New Brunswick (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -5.1%

06-22-2012 20:41:37 | More by Ivanhoes_Backpack

Edgerrin32

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -5.1%

02-28-2012 03:32:03 | More by Edgerrin32

benbou17

Alberta (Canada)

4/5  rDev +8.4%

12-05-2011 03:40:08 | More by benbou17

tbeckett

Ontario (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bonus from kjyost. Thanks.

A - A little bit of leakage in the plastic bag it was sent in leads me to believe this sprung a leak somewhere along the way. Pours black with slight red notes around the edges. Great fluffy light brown head at three fingers.Good one finger retention and thick lace.

S - Lot's of coffee and roasted malts. Smells very nice.

T - More roasted, a little cola, no coffee. Not too bad.

M - Carbonation is good and body is medium to full. A little dry in the finish.

O/D - Not a bad stout. Not great but flavourful and easy to drink. Good.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 01:37:12 | More by tbeckett

IllNate

British Columbia (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a nice dark black with just a hit of amber highlights around the edges. With mountain of tan head. Seriously a lot of head, but I did let it warm up a bit too much (15c)

S - Somewhat subdued chocolate and burt malt aroma. A bit of fresh grassy hop as well.

T - Here the coffee and chocolate are well up front. Must be a lot of really high roast in here.

M - Nice and smooth. A bit of that slick oatmeal character. Not a ton of body, but it's nice.

D - Good.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2011 02:06:55 | More by IllNate

andrenaline

Ontario (Canada)

3.53/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Cheers to joemcgrath27 for the hook up on the Paddock Wood selections.

A - Pours pitch black with a finger of mocha head, decent retention and some fine sporadic lacing.

S - Scent is dominated by espresso and coffee malts, a bit of a chalky dark chocolate comes through and a bit of burnt wood.

T - Taste is a bit musty and smokey, but the chocolate and espresso malts are present with a bit of burnt wood and charcoal that lingers.

M - Nothing overly offensive here, but it finishes a tad too dry for my liking.

D - Overall a very tasty offering with some unique attributes. I would've preferred something a little sweeter. I've had better Oatmeal Stouts, but it's definitely still worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2010 17:56:36 | More by andrenaline

joemcgrath27

Alberta (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Part of the Paddock Wood "Big Box O Beer" mixer pack
A - pitch black with one finger of tan head that dissipated to a few random islands
S - molasses and chocolate, sweet licorice burnt grains
T - cocoa and molasses burnt malt, subtle milky oatmeal, and bitter tobacco and coffee bean finish
M - chewy with a somewhat surprising amount of carbonation, finishing a little dry and bitter
D - a nice offering with a focus on burnt and bitter flavours, not a session beer IMO, but fairly easy drinking

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2010 02:09:19 | More by joemcgrath27

papat444

Quebec (Canada)

3.35/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to kjyost for this one. Paired with my supper last night, apple & raisin salad and a T-bone steak.

Poured from a 341ml. bottle.

Appearance: Overwhelming foam (color of cappuccino foam) fills a lot of the glass. Looks black in the light but actually pours a dark brown. I would have rated it lower but the retention was quite great and the head was nice with pockmarks and everything.

Smell: Charcoal, roasted notes, maybe a coffee twang and some slight bitterness.

Taste: I glean some roasted malt, some coffee bitterness, a nice oatmeal presence and i dig the subdued charcoal. Still, this could be better if not for the excessive carbonation.

Mouthfeel: Way too much carbonation which impedes the flavor. Hurts the palate a little. After about half an hour, creaminess comes out and feels better. Feel like i should score it lower but a 3 seems right.

Drinkability: Alright i guess though i struggled through the carbonation. Not something i would get on a regular basis.

Overall: It left me a bit bloated which is too bad because the flavor was good. If the carbonation could have been reined in, this would easily have been a B+.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2010 11:53:39 | More by papat444

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to kjyost for this one.

Poured in to Duvel tulip.

A - Dark black with a lot (3 fingers) of thick foamy light brown head.

S - Dark roasted malts with a noticeable sweetness. Some light chocolate notes and some slight hop bitterness.

T - Nice roasted malt flavour with some chocolate and coffee notes coming through along with a nice bitterness.

M - Light to medium body, heavily carbonated (too much carbonation for me)

D - A very nice palate but the heavy carbonation really ruined this one for me.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2010 15:08:58 | More by TheSevenDuffs

kjyost

Manitoba (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev -7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Bought at the MLCC, bottled Aug 2009. Yes, this is (quite sadly ) old, and even an email to the brewmaster told me to stay away from it...

Pours into a tulip and it is a beautiful opaque black (is that redundant?) with a tall mocha head that lasts and lasts and laces. Why not a perfect score? I don't actually know. The aroma is delectable, with molasses and hints of chocolate and licorice playing with your nose. The head feels creamy to the mouth although the carbonation is much more prickly than I would expect from a beer of this sort. The beer is lacking a bit in bitterness (age perchance?) and tastes a little thin and watery with hints of the licorice from the nose and not nearly enough roasted malt character. I know this is an old bottle, but until the MLCC clears out their old stock this is the best I can do to sample this fresh... I look forward to it when it is as it was meant to be.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2010 04:56:07 | More by kjyost

DoctorStrangiato

Alberta (Canada)

3.45/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 5 | overall: 3.5

Poured a 355-ml bottle into a tulip glass.

Appearance - jet black brew with a brown head. Light carbonation, but nice lacing on the sides of the glass.

Smell - right off the bat the chocolate and heavily roasted oats aroma hits me. Right below that is a delicate malt riding under this burnt offering.

Taste - a very light flavour, roasted and grainy. Finish is very wet with minimal aftertaste. Not much hop presence.

Mouthfeel - smooth as silk, unmatched in this attribute.

Drinkability - not bad at all although this style is not my first choice. Not what I would put several away of.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2010 23:39:48 | More by DoctorStrangiato

pootz

Ontario (Canada)

3.78/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Bottle:

Black murky and light defying in the glass. Nice sticky mocha colored cap with great retention, laces well.

Aroma: wow! Dark fruits and double fudge with a wisp of grass....nice;

Profile is a bit of a letdown from the aroma. Rather a weak body for an oatmeal stout, but the malts in the front side are toasty-roast with coffee and bitter cocoa tastes then the finish goes dry with astringency from charred grain hulls and the hopping...very metallic lingering bitterness.

A very good approximation of a London stout although a tad thin for an Oatmeal stout, it is very decent.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2010 01:00:17 | More by pootz

nokes

Ontario (Canada)

3.8/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Whoa! Down boy! Whew...had a hard time keeping the head down on this one...lots of loose foamy tan head on top of a very dark and somewhat fizzy body. Held up to the light, it's opaque for sure, but around the edges when you look through less beer you can see some reddish brown hues that are quite attractive as well. Head is dying back relatively quickly, but getting more dense as it does so, and it never dies back completely. Leaves a bubbly foam on top that's just fine, thank you. Quite a nice beer...seems quite heavily carbonated for the style.

Lots of roasted grainy smells on the nose, and some dark molasses. Nice.

Taste is quite good. Coffee, roasted grains, barely-sweetened chocolate, and a mildly sour/bitter finish. Very much a stout.

Mouthfeel is where this falls down in my opinion. It's a little thin, and I was wondering how the fizziness would work with the oatmeal creaminess. I was hoping it would work better, but unfortunately for me it just didn't. Ultimately it felt unbalanced in that respect. One nice thing is the alcohol, which comes out a bit at the end for a mild warming effect which is quite welcome.

This is a tasty and beautiful beer that is enjoyable to drink. I like it. I have 5 more of these (good friend brought me a 6er from the home stomping grounds...brewery is about a kilometre from where I used to live) and I look forward to the rest of them. I'll try to share at least some.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2010 03:31:09 | More by nokes

Sharkbitten

Alberta (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours well with a decent amount of foamy head which swiftly subsides.

The smell is a tad underdeveloped and a little more aroma might be nice to bring out more flavors.

Good taste slightly lighter that what one would expect based on the color but still quite drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2009 06:50:21 | More by Sharkbitten

Shadman

Alberta (Canada)

3.55/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours and ink black with a strong tan head, good retention, and lacing.

Slightly grainy with some decent roast coffee kick in there.

Roast coffee wuth a decent milky sweetness that is nice & smooth. Slight dark chocolate and mixs in with grassy hop for a dryish finish.

Bit watery in the front, smooth & fuller in the back.

A nice session oatmeal stout.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2009 04:11:47 | More by Shadman

IronDjinn

Alberta (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Another fine sample from Paddockwood's Big Box O' Beer, along with their pilsner, black lager and IPA. One of the few variety packs out there where there are no duds included.

Ah, yes now, pours out an opaque pitch black, the faintest of a thin garnet nimbus when held to direct lighgt, tall beige head that starts out spongy and turns creamy as it slowly settle.

Nice rounded roasted malt up front on the nose, some coffee and milky sweetness, dry cocoa appears later.

Mild coffee up front in the flavour, clean dry middle, with a robust roasted malt building on the finish and coming to a crescendo in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel is somewhat thin, hardly any carbonation, however remains smooth, and even a bit slick on the finish.

A decent oatmeal stout, and would sit well as a session stout, the dryness continues to clear the palate.

Serving type: bottle

09-28-2009 02:19:31 | More by IronDjinn

mothman

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Ah Bete Noire, The Black Beast!

Poured into a pint glass.

Color is a deep brown/black. Pours a tan head leaving splattered lace. Good retention.

Smell is of dark coffee and dark chocolate. Very malty. Taste is very malty with grassy hops. Complex coffee and dark chocolate flavors.

Mouthfeel is kind of bitter, but goes down very creamy. Leaves a sticky aftertaste.

Overall, this is a pretty easy to drink stout. At 5.4% abv I was able to enjoy a few of these. I definitely recommend this one.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2009 01:36:19 | More by mothman

EsoxLucius

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bete Noire is from a local micro brewery in town so I felt compelled to buy it again to write a review. My benchmark for these types of stouts is St. Ambroise, though not perfect, I've yet to find a perfect beer as I'd likely be enjoying it too much to write a decent review. I will say, most of Paddock Wood's products are good and definitely worth a try.

Appearance: Pretty good, little bit lighter in color than the benchmark, pours an initial light brown fluffy head that dissipates pretty fast. Lacing is good throughout an entire drink.

Smell: A tad bitter, with Coffee and Brown Sugar tones. Obviously a roasted smell to it as well.

Taste: Likely its strongest side, and in my mind most important. Nice coffee tones and the blackstrap molasses (dark, dark) taste is there and I absolutely love it! It has a bitter bite at the end.

Mouth feel: it's smooth, but thin compared to other stouts, it definitely doesn't 'stick' to your mouth like some stouts. I personally would like a bit more mouth feel, but it's not a deterrent to not get this product.

Drink: good, I love dark stouts so I could drink this anytime and enjoy it.

This is another great local product that I'd suggest to try.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2009 06:04:33 | More by EsoxLucius

Graham5161986

British Columbia (Canada)

4.22/5  rDev +14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer pours a a deep black with a nice, three finger dark tan head has decent retention but reduces to a brownish film on the top of the beer. Smell is of rich chocolate malts with some decent hopping in the background. Taste is chocolaty with a touch of java and some sugary fruit on the mid-palate - good amount of complexity. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied, has just a touch of tingly carbonation and a creamy, but quite dry finish. I was very pleased with this beer. I think it has a lot of different flavours to offer and makes a great cold day beer. I would definitely buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2008 02:02:30 | More by Graham5161986

harley101

Manitoba (Canada)

1.85/5  rDev -49.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

i bought this beer after reading the reviews hoping i would really enjoy it but i was disappointed. I usually like the coffee chocolate types but the flavor was muddled by too much foam and carbonation. It felt terrible and tasted awful. The only upside to this ale was the color and appearance. I could not get through one of them, i wont be buying it again.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2008 05:29:24 | More by harley101

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Picked up a single of this "Black Beast", thinking I needed to try some other Paddock Wood offerings beyond the 606...

The beer pours, as advertised, an inky black; held up to the light, it is absolutely opaque. It makes the two eyes on my Alley Kat pint glass practically glow in comparison. There are a few fingers of brownish head, which melts away after a few minutes, leaving a nice lacing around the glass. The smell - the smell is mouth-watering, lots of bitter chocolate and roasted malt. The flavour has less chocolate, and more of the malt present, which has more coffee essence coming forward. What got me, though, is the weight of this beer - it's much thicker than I'd been led to believe; chewy; this sensation is lessened somewhat by the carbonation, which is actually not that intense, but still distracts a bit in the otherwise luxuriant mouthfeel. It does indeed have a creamy texture, which becomes more apparent as it warms. The alcohol exposes slightly at the finish, making this quite a decent sipper for a cold night.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2008 01:33:05 | More by biboergosum

demcorhip

Ontario (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A nice sound of a lively brew as i opened this one. Gave me a big, loose head on a regular pour, quickly subsided to give a much smaller, and tighter head much like espresso crema. Already some sticky gobs of lace.

Aroma of roasted malts, leafy hops, some fruity esters of dark pitted fruits (plum, cherry) and creamy oatmeal greet the nose.

Wow, wasnt overly impressed with the nose, but this brew really opened up and reveals its true character and flavours upon tasting. Espresso flavoured roasted malts that give way to smooth cocoa meet creamy oatmeal, the estery character is much less pronounced, a hint of caramel segues into a touch of anise and leafy hops which give way to a smoky and very slightly acrid roastiness. Good stuff.

A nice feel to this brew. Medium bodied, somewhat lively with a persistent, finely bubbling carbonation. Somewhat smooth and creamy, though not quite velvety from the oats.

A very drinkable and rich and tasty brew from my hometown. Would make for a great session brew on a -40 saskatoon midwinter's night. Also a tasty brew to sample here and there throughout the year. A solid oatmeal stout, and well worth trying for fans of the style, definitely recommended. This sample was cellared for approx 9 months.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2008 21:15:52 | More by demcorhip