“Part 2 of our long standing collaboration with one of the pioneers of Australian Whisky. DARK STAR is our well-known Praline that has been thoughtfully aged in freshly disgorged premium STARWARD whisky barrels for 12 months.”

Glassware: Snifter.

Appearance: Matte black with an extremely fizzy brown head which disappears rather quickly. Only the finest of rings is left and there’s no surprises that it doesn’t lace one bit.

Aroma: We remember all those years ago when the OG Praline Stout was released. Way back before the explosion of Pastry Stouts. We recall being blown away so it’s really cool to see this barrel aged expression. Big wafts of Belgian chocolate, hazelnut, nougat and toffee upfront (just as the original did). The Starward whiskey is nicely woven through…adding a touch of Port/Red Wine, Apera/Sherry, orchard fruits oak and spice.

Flavour: Hhhmmm we had an inkling it was going to display a bit of tartness and it does. Thankfully it’s only a short cameo and the nutty, chocolatey and caramel-filled middle washes over. There’s a slight bitterness and a robust roasted malt which sets up for a nutty, mildly roasty and vinous finish which lingers on the back palate nicely.

Mouthfeel: Surprisingly light and effervescent. A little pucker on the lips too. Medium body. The 6.3% ABV is uncommonly low for a BA Stout. We don’t mind it though.

Overall: Not as thrilled by it as we had hoped. Starward are yet to produce a whiskey we like though so that could have something to do with it. The Praline Stout base was the best part in our opinion.