Robinsons Trooper Fear of the Dark

I have been so impressed with the Iron Maiden beers brewed in collaboration with Robinsons and their chocolate stout, Fear of the Dead, is no exception.  

Now that's what a stout should look like!  It pours a dark brown with a robust, thick and tight tan head.  The aroma is quite light but I picked up notes of malt, treacle and chocolate.

There's nothing light about the flavour; it has a lovely taste of chocolate, treacle, malt and a hint of roasted nuts.  It has a full body and medium carbonation that gives it a lovely smooth mouthfeel.

I love stout and I love chocolate so this one is a winner for me.  It's not a heavy stout so it's very pleasant to drink and the chocolate is delicious.  Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Robinsons Brewery, Stockport
4.5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.25/5

Find out more at Iron Maiden Beers

Bellfield Dark Sky Porter

 

This is a beautiful dark and fruity porter from Scottish brewers, Bellfield.  It's very dark, almost black, and it has a small, loose and rapidly vanishing tan head.

It has a mouthwatering aroma of roasted malt, treacle, chocolate and coffee with a hint of juicy red fruit.  It tastes as good as it smells too; it's sweet and fruity with notes of chocolate, treacle and caramel with an unusual and interesting coffee and tangy berry finish.

With low but firm carbonation and a full body, it has a smooth but tingly mouthfeel that made it really pleasant to drink.

It's a lovely fruity porter with a delicious sweetness that reminded me of candied fruit.  I have a sweet tooth so I really liked it and Ale Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Bellfield Brewery, Edinburgh
4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at Bellfield Brewery

Harviestoun Old Engine Oil

 

I've wanted to try Harviestoun's Old Engine Oil for quite a while and I'm pleased to say that it did not disappoint.

It's a lovely velvety black coloured ale with a tight tan head that hardly budges.  It has a mouthwateringly sweet aroma with notes of malt and treacle and I couldn't wait to dive in for a taste.

Roasted malt and sweet treacle combine to produce a well-balanced ale.  Hints of chocolate add a tang of bitterness to the finish.  It's medium bodied and softly carbonated to give a velvety smooth mouthfeel.

It's a dark and delicious ale so it's a bit disappointing that it's only in a 330ml bottle.  I loved the roasted flavour and the chocolate finish is sublime.  I think it's well labelled as a 'Black Ale' as it feels like it's not quite a stout and not quite a porter, but a mighty fine black ale.  I loved it and Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Harviestoun Brewery, Alva, Scotland
6% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.25/5

Find out more at Harviestoun Brewery

Autumn Alt Brew No.03

I was really intrigued by the grain beers brewed by naturally gluten-free brewers Autumn Brewing Company based in County Durham.  As a dark beer lover, naturally I went for the stout brewed from rice, millet and quinoa.  So let's see what I thought.

It's a beautiful dark colour, almost black with a slight hint of mahogany but the head is really bad.  It's a dirty dishwater coloured, loose head that disappears at lightning speed so I was really lucky to catch a few bubbles in my photo as a few seconds after that there wasn't even a trace of a bubble left.

The aroma is VERY smoky and it smells more like cigarette smoke than roasted malt, so as a non-smoker this wasn't very appealing at all to me.  Holding my breath, I went in for a sip and almost spat it back out.  I can only describe the taste as what I imagine an ashtray would taste like with some dregs of beer left in it.  Not one to give up, I persevered and I did manage to get some bitter dark chocolate and coffee notes but they are completely overwhelmed by the smokiness.

It's not my kind of thing at all although it wasn't a drain pour as I did get more used to it as I drank it.  I thought the millet and quinoa would give it a nice nutty taste but I couldn't really taste anything other than smoke.  It wouldn't stop me trying Autumn's other beers but unfortunately Ale not Be Seeing Alt Brew No.03 again.

Brewed by Autumn Brewing Co, Seaham, County Durham
4.8% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 1.5/5

Find out more at Autumn Brewing Co