Santa, Can I have a Lump of Coal in My Stocking Every Year?
Written: Feb 15 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Delightful, sinfully chocolaty stout.
Cons: Hard to find.
The Bottom Line: Maybe if you're good this year, you'll get coal in your stocking too.
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| Bruguru's Full Review: Lump of Coal Dark Holiday Stout |
Here it is, February, and I’m still sorting through some of the Christmas beers I hadn’t yet got to try. There are just so many to enjoy these days, and well, you know, just not enough time to drink them all and still remain a respectable member of the community, Work is, as they say, the curse of the drinking class.
Anyway, my Beloved Barbara™ decided I had been a bit naughty this year. Well, really naughty actually, but in a good kind of way. So, when Christmas came around, she put a Lump of Coal in my stocking. But in this case, that’s a good thing. Because Lump of Coal Dark Holiday Stout happens to be a very tasty beer, not a carbonaceous fossil fuel.
Lump of Coal is brewed by the Ridgeway brewery of Oxfordshire, England. We actually picked it up as part of a Christmas gift set at World Market that featured four English Christmas ales for $20.00. Not a bad deal at that, since these are all half liter bottles. The brewer advises that this beer is very good on the label; in fact, they suggest that it’s much more than you deserve for Christmas this year..
Lump of Coal Dark Holiday Stout pours to a dark brownish black color, almost as dark as coal, but not quite. If you hold the beer up to the light a bit will poke through. Lump of Coal has a very thin head formation. Indeed, I was surprised as I decanted the liquid from half liter bottle to glass how lightly carbonated the beer seemed. The nose simply exudes chocolate, deep, dark, delicious chocolate. Then you take a sip, and get even more chocolaty flavor.
Rich, dark, bittersweet chocolate flavor. Powdery cocoa chocolate flavor. All in all, lots of chocolaty goodness. Although there’s a bit of roasty character here, there’s not as much as you might expect. A hint of fruit is discernible, a subtle suggestion of fig and raisin. The beer isn’t especially bitter, though a touch of grassy hop bitterness and lightly roasty espresso peak through in the finish. Just a touch, mind you. Finally, there’s some warming alcohol, too. Lump of coal is a bit stronger than most at 8% alcohol by volume, after all.
This is a very tasty brew, especially for chocolate lovers, and a fine holiday treat as well. Why, if I’d known getting a lump of coal in my stocking was going to be this good, I would have been a very bad boy a long time ago. But you know what they say. Better late than never.
Recommended:
Yes
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