New Holland Night Tripper - Not a Big Deal

I first had a sample of the New Holland Night Tripper on Dark Lord Day, back in April. A friend of a friend cracked a year-old bottle at the tent. I thought it was quite good. After brewing my own Imperial Stout, I saw this at my local Wise Way grocery store for $5.99. I thought it was a pretty good deal. So I stashed it in my fridge in May.

I decided to give this a try, even though it had not aged a year. Nothing says that it had to age a year, I just knew that the sample I tasted was aged that long, and I remembered it being good.

Actually, though, I think it's a pretty average Imperial Stout. Sort of along the same lines as Stone's Imperial Stout. It's not a bad beer, but it just doesn't jump out at you. All the flavors are subdued - you get a little chocolate, a little coffee-ness from the roasted malt, but there's no dark fruit here like I've had in some Imperial Stouts.

For the price, it's not bad. Who knows, that whole Dark Lord Day kind of imparts a euphoria on a person, so it's likely that my mood was different, which can make all the difference when you're trying something new. I just remember the beer being a bit more complex than this.