Tasting Day - Pitchfork Black

Well, today we are going to a holiday party and I wanted to take along some of my homebrew.  I always like to taste my beers before letting other people have at them.  So its time to try the Pitchfork Black.

Overview:
It's an Imperial American Stout that had some Espresso Coffee and Blackstrap Molasses added during the brewing process.  Added hops for a more bitter stout makes me classify it as an American Imperial.

It clocks in at 8.2% ABV and has 63 IBUs.

Appearance:  According to BeerSmith the SRM is at 47.  So it is a pitch black.  At the edge of the glass you can see a dark burnt brown color if light gets through. 

Little to no head on a pour right down the middle of the glass.  Some lacing on the glass as you drink it. I expected this though.  I hope another week will give it a bit more head and pop from the carbonation.

Smell: Surprisingly you don't get any overpowering burnt or roast smells. A tiny bit of an alcohol smell with a bit of coffee.  The bottle holds some of the smells and you can smell the Cascade hops in the bottle.

Taste: Again, I am a bit surprised at how balanced this beer turned out.  Very smooth up front with some roasted flavors coming through.  Biggest thing is the bitterness from the Blackstrap and Cascade hops.  But you have to search for them.

Mouth:  Smooth going down but leaves a nice coating in your mouth which makes you want to take another sip.

Overall:  This may be my best stout brewed to date.  Its complex but yet the complexity is not so up front that it makes you question if you like it or not.  I drank a bottle in the time it took to finish this post.  Could be dangerous.  At this point the only thing I will possibly adjust is the the carb level.  It might need just a bit more, but we will see how it goes in another week or two.

 Ostrovia!