Maltovivo Black Lizard
Last week, I reviewed a beer (Opperbacco Tripping Flowers) that I had purchased at the Gainesville location Cork & Fork along with a couple of other bottles that the store’s crew had alerted me to. While, that Belgian Golden Ale was tasty, this bottle of Black Lizard from Italy’s Maltovivo was my favorite of the pair.
I don’t know much about this beer, and the brewery’s website offers little with regard to information — not to mention that it’s in Italian — but this 6.5% ABV English Porter is layered with all sorts of tasty goodness. The brew is robust, has depth and proves to leave a lasting impression after each sip. It’s not at all sessionable, but it’s also not a beer to be afraid of despite the smokey character found in the aroma. It goes down smooth.
Appearance
Black Lizard pours, well, black with a large brown head that fell quickly to a thin collar.
Aroma
This beer smells great. Dark, rich malts fill the nose with hits of roast coffee, espresso, cocoa and a distant campfire smoke.
Taste
This certainly is a robust beer. It’s full-flavored and rich, yet fairly easy drinking. There’s an oatmeal smoothness, an earthy quality, a hint of lactose, roasted espresso and a touch of cocoa that all arrive in various amounts throughout the drinking experience. The medium-bodied brew leaves a lingering warmth in the slightly dry finish.
Overall
This is a porter that I would love to have around more often. It’s deceptively smooth and easy drinking for a beer with such a robust, full-flavored character. It’s got just about everything you could want in a beer of this style, delivered in an attractive package.
Rating: 4.25/5
