This is a review of Super Bock Stout and my entry for this week's #BeerSaturday challenge, I hope you enjoy. Cheers!
I came across this beer on a recent trip to Portugal and really enjoyed it. There is something about a local beer in a local setting that makes it that much more enjoyable.
It's never quite the same when you buy the same beer back home that you had on vacation but I found this one on the shelf at a local grocery store and decided to give it a another go.
Details
Brewery: Unicer Bebidas (Superbock Group Carlsberg)
Origin: Portugal
Inception: 2003
Style: Black Lager
Alcohol: 5% abv
Something a little different and somewhat interesting about this beer is its lid design. It's not a pop top or twist off but a sort of innovative pull tab.
This may be something that has been around for a long time but it's the first that I've ever seen it so it stood out to me as unique and kind of cool. I'd still say that I prefer a pop top but this definitely makes opening the beer super easy.
Imagery
The label on the bottle is pretty unremarkable in terms of its design. It has very basic and simple marketing and is somewhat boring really. But these things don't really matter a whole lot if the product is good.
Color
The color of the beer is black with a light tan head that disipated rapidly for me.
Nose
The aroma was pretty mild with generic roasted notes. I didn't detect any coffee or chocolate and struggled a bit to pick up on anything really.
Flavor Notes
It was similar with the flavor as well. I noticed some generic roasted flavors way in the background but no chocolate or coffee like you would normally find in a stout beer. No toasted notes either.
There was initially some sweetness at first and only a very mild bitterness that didn't linger at all. Overall I was underwhelmed by both the tast and smell when drinking the beer critically back home. I think I just expected more, especially given its color.
Palate
The mouthfeel was smooth and velvety. It had sharp bubbles yet a somewhat mild amount of carbonation.
Conclusion
Overall I was a bit perplexed by this beer in the end. It's super dark and yet it was very lacking in the aroma and flavor that you would normally find in a stout beer. The color of a beer traditionally comes from the malt(s) that are used during the brewing process and generally the darker the malts used the more roasted the beer tastes and smells (obviously). That being said, the Super Bock Stout seems like should have the usual chocolate and coffee notes coming through given its color, yet is has none of them. Hmmm...? Strange.
I did some mild digging into the ingredients used in the brew and learned that the color is added and comes from the chemical E150C. Yuk!
Call me a "purist" and a "beer snob" but I really hate shit like this. It makes me think what's the point? The beer isn't a real stout beer but wants to look like one, and to what end? To be cool? So that the people who drink it can feel unique and special because they like to pretend that they like really dark beers when they actually don't? I don't get it really.
I will admit that I really liked the beer while on vacation, but at home I found it to be quite bland and boring really. Now that I know that the color isn't even real I don't think I will ever buy it again.
So in the end, to me this beer is a typical case of Style over Substance. It looks good but it's all just fake in the end.
What do you think? Am I being silly here in my opinion or too snobbish? Let me know in the comments.
I'm not a big beer drinker... in fact, I only just started drinking beers. However, style over substance is never good to any degree, so I can understand your disappointment in that beer. I do agree that it's a bit of cheating with the colour 😏
Yeah beer is not for everyone.
Agreed. I actually got that phrase from "The Great British Bakeoff." Paul Hollywood says it all the time. Do you know that show?
I know of the show, but I do not watch television. There's a TV in my bedroom that has not been turned on in 15 months.
Now you know a good way to punish me if ever you had to.
That's probably for the best. Too much TV isn't good for a person lol.
I like watching a good movie though.
I do as well, though they seem to be few and far between lately.
yeah, or they are totally predictable. That's why I quite like non-Hollywood movies... French movies are great, but I have to watch the dubbed version which is distracting.
I am more of a wino, although I do appreciate a good beer.
Haha I'm also that too. I don't discriminate lol
I knew you wete good people. :)
cheers and a !BEER - feel sorry for the "bad" taste
Yeah. It was just very lacking overall. Not bad but just... meh 😒
And I really didn't like learning that the color was added with chemicals. That really turned me off of it.
!BEER
Thanks!
for me a black beer with smell coffe it is amazing and i love it, great review :D
Me also. I love that style of beer. Unfortunately this one wasn't quite like that
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