Brewery: Whitewater
Location: Kilkeel, Northern Ireland
ABV: 4.2%
Version: 500ml bottle
Source: Gapwines

Whitewater Brewery must be doing something right. Not only do they produce quality beer but they've also managed to get their up-to-now 3 bottled beers widely available throughout Northern Ireland in off-licences, both independents and chains, and in the local branches of the major national supermaket chains.  Not bad for a micro-brewery.

It's been a while since they launched a new bottled beer so I was looking forward to trying this one. Belfast Black is billed as a dry stout, and is so new it hasn't been added to their website yet. Black in colour (well, I wasn't expecting it to be anything else), there's a lovely chocolately coffee aroma, not too overpowering. Taste is predominantly of more chocolate and coffee maltiness, with some dry hoppy bitterness coming through later, and a texture edging towards the slightly oily. It's not an overly strongly flavoured stout but a nicely balanced one, and a fine addition to the Whitewater collection. Worth checking out. 

One further point I will make. When it comes to "chill or not to chill" beer I tend to follow the brewery's recommendation on the grounds they should know best. With Belfast Black the label says "best served chilled", which I did. However, personally I think this robs the beer of some depth of flavour and it comes across more like a black lager until it warms up again (and it seems I may not be the only one who thought so, see the link below). It's still perfectly fine chilled, but much better when not.

Elsewhere in the Beerblogosphere -

The Beer Nut says of Belfast Black - From the keg it's an absolutely rock-solid chocolate malt dominated Irish plain stout, very much on the sweeter side of the spectrum.

Related posts:

1. Tasting Notes: Belfast Blonde
2. Tasting Notes: Guinness Black Lager
3. Tasting Notes: Molly’s Chocolate Stout
4. Tasting Notes: Wychwood Black Wych
5. Tasting Notes: Moorhouse Black Panther