Rating: 6/6

Kuroi or Black (黑) by Mikkeller brewing is a 16.8% ABV World Class Imperial Stout

Description:

Brewed at De Proefbrouwerij.

Ingredients: Water, malt, roasted barley, dark cassonade, ale yeast and champagne yeast.

==Introduction==
It’s literally been yeeaarrrsss since I have tried Mikkeller Black. At the time of trying different beers, even before Dog Fish Head Forte, 120 Minute IPA and even before the Bruery and Samichlaus, this was the first time I had tried a beer that reached ridiculous ABV levels. Originally purchased at my local shop, this beer is very common. It is in the long list of somewhat overlooked beers which the craft beers afficionados overlook sometimes. Well, I definitely like to take a dive to my roots from time to time and bringing this one back from a long time was definitely worth it. Black a the night, fast and smooth as ninjas, I still remember the crazy beer called Black! Let’s see how well this fairs, cheers!

Aromas:

Mocha, roasted coffee, earthy hops, dark fruits, smokey notes, dark chocolate, Belgian chocolate, vanilla, oak notes, wine grape hints, port wine, fruit cake, burnt sugar, molasses, anise, rye bread, pecan pie and pomegranate cordials.

Flavors:

Rich burnt candi sugar, roasted coffee grounds, mocha, smokey roast, roasted barley, rich dark fruit prunes, raisins, plums, cherry cordials, pomegranates, blackberries, currants, bananas, anise, molasses, clove spice, dark chocolate, earthy hops, port wine, chocolate wine, milk chocolate, burnt marshmallows, burnt cookie, Danish cream, Irish cream, dark chocolate truffles, dulce de leche caramel, vanilla, rye bread, Chambord raspberry liqueur, wine hinting funk, Belgian chocolate, pecan pie, hazelnut, maple hints, fruit cake and three milks/3 leches cake.

Aftertaste:

Long lingering roast, smoke, dark fruit, earthy hop with lots of subtle chocolate, caramel, vanilla, cherry, banana and coffee complexities. Slight alcohol in the taste but not detracting from the already super complex flavors along with you guessed it, pitch black full body with a slight bloody crimson resonance under a certain light frequency which you only get a glimpse of. Smooth, creamy, velvety, syrupy mouthfeel and sipping drinkability.

Overall:

An exceptional stout! Full of everything I love about traditional boozy stouts and even Belgian stouts. Heck, this even reminds me of the Brew Dog Tactical Nuclear Penguin I had years ago as well. If you look deep enough, you can also find the Dark Lord Imperial stout in this one, No joke! Imagine that, a beer that is overlooked and yet is still supreme to this day, oh how we have forgotten. Sure won’t forget this one again. Go find this beer! Cheers!
Anime Corner:

Seras Victoria from Hellsing was brought back for this review as she was used to represent the absolute darkness. Her partner? Oh, it’s just Alucard, the alias of Count Dracula/Vlad The Impaler. God, the olden days must have been brutal. This beer may have put people in the right set of mind. Black as the Plague? Well, not sur eif this was the cure but it would of eased the pain.