Black Belgian Stout

Allagash Brewing Company certainly knows how to do Belgian-style beers and uses that expertise to produce Black Belgian Stout at its Portland, Maine brewery. As advertised, this is a Belgian-influenced riff on the ubiquitous Irish classic. Overflowing with gobs of burnt black malt laced with black pepper and black cherries, the nose is neither classically “Belgian” nor “stout,” but an intriguing marriage of the two. Drifting beneath the intense notes of French roast coffee and tar, Tom uncovered tantalizing hints of “Bing cherries and ripe red raspberries.” Tom also picked out the “distinctive Belgian yeast tang,” and offered praise for the melding of peppery spiciness, succulent fruit, and aggressive roasted malt. The spiciness struck Pete more as “exotic and clove-like,” and he noted traces of vanilla riding between the prominent burnt malt and light, apricot-like fruitiness. This Stygian-hued brew, sporting a velvety ecru head, bathes the room in its opaque blackness. The Belgian yeast character doesn’t really shine in the flavor, which is dominated by stinging, burnt black malt and slightly gummy caramel. Rick was taken by the cocoa and coffee notes, reminiscent of a “Brandy float with scoops of coffee/chocolate ice cream.” Tim felt the brewer did a masterful job of balancing “rich, gooey caramel and biting roasty malt.” Marrying myriad flavors and aromas, Black Belgian Stout could easily replace a fine claret at the supper table.