Snobby Beer Written Reviews – Dark Horse Plead The Fifth

Dark Horse Plead The Fifth

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a snifter…

APPEARANCE

Obviously, VERY dark. This guy poured very slowly into the glass. It had a lovely brown head, probably one of the darker heads I’ve seen. The head was about 2 fingers. There was minimal bubbles.

SMELL

Very malty in the nose. There was a big amount of chocolate and roasty aromas. It had a little bit of alcohol, but not NEARLY as much as you would expect! There was also a slight graininess in the smell, as well as some tropical fruits and banana which was quite surprising.

TASTE

In my notes from this beer (which I had a few nights ago), the first thing I wrote for the taste was “Sooo good”. And it definitely is! Very sweet with a big amount of yummy chocolate and bittersweet cocoa. It had a burnt-sweet-fruit taste, and I mean that in the best way possible. There was a fairly strong banana flavor which was extremely pleasant. There was NO alcohol taste to be found in this beer. I swear there was a good amount of oak flavors in it, yet I don’t think it was aged in oak barrels (but I’m not 100% sure that it wasn’t.) I have to say that this beer was very similar to Founders KBS, without the coffee flavors.

MOUTHFEEL

Very thick and very smooth. This is one of those beers I put into my “Big-Ol’-Stankin-Beer” category. It was very warming from the alcohol.

OVERALL

This is by far one of my favorite Imperial Stouts, and relatively inexpensive (compared to other IS). It’s also a bit easier to get a hold of, and even though it’s by no means “cheap”, it’s fairly reasonably priced compared to other beers with this much alcohol. This beer is pretty dangerous though, because it’s very drinkable (considering the thickness), and you definitely cannot taste the 12-14% ABV – so be careful with this guy!

SCORE: ★★★★ 4/5