Dark Star Over The Moon

Tasting Summary

These comments are the opinion of the individual reviewer and represent what they thought of the beer on a particular day in a particular pub. If a review is less favourable, it may be because the beer suffered somewhere in the supply chain between them and the brewery.

White Cliffs Beer Festival 2014, Dover, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Mick		07 Feb 2014	7.0% ?? thought this was 3.8. Not keen a bit harsh, maybe it just clashed with the previous beer. Not the OTM I know.

Artillery Arms, Ramsgate, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Blair		17 Nov 2011	Great pint of over t' moon.

Turf Tavern, Oxford, Oxfordshire

Who	Score	When	Notes
Andrew		29 Oct 2011	This was excellent Over the Moon

The Chequers Inn, Petham, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Andrew		22 Oct 2011	Excellent condition and very hoppy with that nice roasted malt flavour.
Pedro		27 Mar 2011
thebrewingman		20 Feb 2011	An excellent dark beer.

Lobster Shack (formerly The Whitstable Brewery Bar), Whitstable, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Pedro		22 Jul 2011

Express Tavern (use other entry now please), Brentford, Greater London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Martin the Mildman		14 Jul 2011	This is now far too hoppy to be classed as a mild! Very much in the style of a weak black IPA with lots of citrus cascade hop flavour. The colour is also lighter, more like a ruby/brown. Any caramel or roast malt flavours are now verymuch in the background. My score 15/20.

Ye Olde Mitre, Holborn, Central London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Martin the Mildman		16 Jun 2011	Rather bitter sample here with a bit of a clash between the dark malts and cascade hops with neither gaining the advantage. My score 14/20.

The Butchers Arms, Herne, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Andrew	Not Tried	01 Jun 2011
Blair	Not Tried	06 Apr 2011
Andrew	Not Tried	02 Apr 2011
Mick	Not Tried	24 Feb 2011
Blair		23 Feb 2011	Yup as good as ever.
Mick		08 Jan 2011	I love this beer, dark as a stout but drinks like a bitter, good hops and a super finish, superb.
Andrew		07 Jan 2011	Great beer. Dark, hoppy and with a caramel bite. Top stuff.
ChrisE		15 Dec 2010	Dark and hoppy easy drinking ale.
Andrew	Not Tried	13 Nov 2010
Brian		13 Nov 2010	Excellent dark beer. Incredible taste for the strength, nice sweet floral finish.
Mick	Not Tried	16 Sep 2010
Andrew	Not Tried	02 Sep 2010
Andrew		03 Aug 2010	I'm with Mick on this one. It's a superb beer with a great hop profile and subtle caramel malt.
Mick		24 Jul 2010	Perfect condition, superb taste, so complex for a 3.8% beer
Mick		22 May 2010	Superb, what a complex beer this is for it's gravity
Mick		08 May 2010	One of my favourite beers, dark with complex bitter sweet tastes.
Blair	Not Tried	22 Dec 2009
Ken		20 Nov 2009	Rich, smooth, fruity and a hint of smoke. But definitely not a mild.
KB		17 Nov 2009	My goodness this is a good pint. Can't really say what it is but this is one of the best beers available in my opinion. Enough to stay on it all night. Excellent.
Blair		09 Oct 2009	Lovely 'different' ale. Roasted malt and hops, really tasty.
Conan the Librarian	Not Tried	23 Sep 2009
Mick		22 Sep 2009	Fantastic, I love this beer, intense flavour for a 3.8% beer, not quite sure how to define it, even the brewers say it's not a mild. Is it a dark bitter? I do not know or care, it is a superb ale.
Conan the Librarian	Not Tried	03 Sep 2009
Glyn		02 Sep 2009
Andrew	Not Tried	31 Jul 2009
Ian		31 Jul 2009	Slightly less hoppy than normal. Really drinkable with some lovely toasty malts.
Mick		29 Jul 2009	Dark and bursting with flavour, hard to believe it's only 3.8%
Mick	Not Tried	09 May 2009
Blair		07 May 2009	Always seems to take a few swigs to get into. Really good dark session beer.
Andrew		02 May 2009	Excellent Dark Star mottled citrus hop flavours in a sweet, dark body.
Mick	Not Tried	30 Apr 2009
Glyn		08 Apr 2009	Probably one of the great session beers. Sensational!
Blair		07 Apr 2009	A lot darker than I remember last year, and also less hoppier. Seemed more like a traditional mild. Very good though.
Glyn		10 Feb 2009
Glyn		05 Feb 2009
Ian	Not Tried	31 Jan 2009	We’ve decided that it isn’t a mild as it is too hoppy and should therefore be classed as a dark bitter.
Glyn		28 Jan 2009	Really tasty dark session beer, lots of flavours but dont know which ones
Andrew		24 Jan 2009	We were going to get a 3.5 pt take-out of the Hop Head but after Cam had this in the pub we changed our minds. This was great. Smooth roasted, slightly sweet, malt with a mellow 'hop head' hop signature. Just great. As Cam rightly pointed out this was very similar to Nottingham Brewery's Rock Mild.
Mick		24 Jan 2009	What more can I say about this beer? It is superb and in excellent condition tonight.
KB		18 Jan 2009
Mick		06 Nov 2008	Very nice, very complex for a 3.8% beer, a favorite of mine and in excellent condition tonight.
Andrew	Not Tried	24 Sep 2008
Andrew	Not Tried	05 Sep 2008
Mick		22 Jul 2008	Ruby-Black, a complex mix of malt,fruit,some hops and a long bitter sweet finish. This is a favourite of mine and was in excellent condition tonight.
Andrew		09 Jul 2008	Now the recipe has mellowed the hop (or at least I assume it has by the change in the character over the last couple of years) this is an excellent mild. Freshing, light and drinkable.
Andrew		14 Jun 2008	Greate taste of smooth bitter raisins.
Blair		31 May 2008	Lovely dark mild, carmael and chocolate with a slight hop background.
Blair	Not Tried	18 Apr 2008
Andrew	Not Tried	12 Apr 2008	Sold out after an hour.
Andrew	Not Tried	28 Aug 2007
Andrew		29 Apr 2006	Smelt of lemon, mellon and roasted malt. Black in colour with a lemon and elderflower flavour and a sharp long bitter finish.

The Royal Oak, Tunbridge Wells, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Pedro		26 Feb 2011

Magpie & Crown, Brentford, Greater London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Martin the Mildman		10 Feb 2011	The citrussy hoppiness of the base Hophead is tempered by the roast and caramel dark malt flavours to give a refreshingly different modern take on a mild beer. My score 16/20.

The Flower Pot, Maidstone, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Dosser		05 Nov 2010
Angie	Not Tried	27 Mar 2010
Alenomore		26 Mar 2010	One of Dark Stars' best ales.
Pedro	Not Tried	25 Mar 2010
Pedro		24 Mar 2010
Pedro		02 Oct 2009
Pedro		30 Sep 2009	Unusally too cold !
Angie		26 Sep 2009	Like a Goldstar with gravy! Just Fab!!

Sissinghurst Castle Smallholders Fair, Sissinghurst, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Wittenden		22 Aug 2010	a really complex tasty dark ale with a great degree of hops-is it a mild, or something on its own? Not too strong, and not as sweet as the colour might hint. Excellent

Rushden Historical Transport Society, Rushden, Northamptonshire

Who	Score	When	Notes
Stephen		03 Jul 2010	Good tasty dark bitter

Old Fountain, Old Street, Central London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Martin the Mildman		15 Jun 2010	Now desribed as dark and bitter on the pumpclip, this is still a modern style mild in my book. It has a fairly high hop rate but also some roast and toasty malt and a little fruitiness. My score 15/20.

The Bull, Horton Kirby, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Dubbel		25 Sep 2009	I'm so pleased I found this on tip top form again. Simply wonderful contrast between sultry dark and juicy hopbomb. Takes me back.
Dubbel		28 Aug 2009	Disappointing. Nothing wrong with the conditioning but lacking in flavour, hop bite & roasted malt. Basically everything that makes it special. A bit gravy-like. I do worry a bit for Dark Star.
Pedro		20 Aug 2009
Dubbel	Not Tried	20 Aug 2009
Dubbel	Not Tried	19 Aug 2009
Ian	Not Tried	08 May 2009
Dubbel	Not Tried	07 Apr 2009
Dubbel		27 Mar 2009	It's been a while since I've had this. Like meeting an old friend, the times we've shared...
Dubbel		06 Mar 2009	Ever so slightly buttery on the finish. But with the scrumptious dark malts not as noticable as in the Hophead.
Blair		06 Mar 2009	I think this was better when I had it at the Butchers Arms. Good but had a strange aftertaste that I don't remember noticing before. Lots of hops, caramel and chocolate. Very smooth right up until the end.
Dubbel		25 Feb 2009	Bovril malts and flowery hops. Yummy.
Dubbel	Not Tried	23 Feb 2009
Dubbel		30 Jan 2009	Seems to change colour intermittently. Distinctly brown today and served cool. Delicious roasted malt whack and lipsmacking hop finish. Blinding pseudo 'mild'.

The Phoenix, Canterbury, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Ian		25 May 2009	Very hoppy and an excellent dark bitter.

The White Horse, Dover, Kent

The Seven Stars, Aldwych, Central London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Ian	Not Tried	19 Feb 2009
Ian		10 Dec 2008	Hoppy aroma for a dark beer, touch of butter on it maybe. But a classy beer.

The Criterion, Leicester, Leicestershire

Who	Score	When	Notes
Stu		04 Feb 2009	A dark ruby ale, hoppy, very fruity with stacks of flavour.

The Wenlock Arms, Hoxton, Central London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Ian		03 Aug 2008	Distinctive Hophead aroma and thenthis fuller malier chocolatey flavour and full mouthfeel. Really enjoyable mild. Citrusy limey hop and choc? Lovely combo.

Rose & Crown, Halstead, Kent

The Yew Tree Inn, Barfrestone, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Andrew		11 Mar 2006	Dark toffee brown in colour with a long toffee-cream head. Lots of grapefruit bitterness (reminiscent of their HopHead) with a toffee elderflower finish.

Maidstone Beer Festival 2005, Maidstone, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Ian		03 Sep 2005	Ruby colour, bubbly beige head, dark fruity malt aroma with some hop. Good in mouth, bit grainy, with OK finish which is dry. Some acids with a bit more fruit on the end. Not the best Dark Star beer, but still good

Reading Beer Festival 2005, Reading, Berkshire

Who	Score	When	Notes
Ian		29 Apr 2005	Mahohany in colour. Unmistakably Dark Star, with good malt/hop nose, good sweetish malt flavour with dryish finish