Smoky cream

Double cream on a black base; cream-coloured with blue eyes.

Smoky cream: Double cream on a black base; cream-coloured with blue eyes.

What does this colour look like?

A cream body, often with a slightly cooler, greyish cast than cremello. Pink skin, blue eyes.

Body
cream with a cool cast
Mane and tail
cream-white
Legs
cream-white
Skin
pink
Eyes
blue

How does this colour arise?

A black horse with two cream genes.

More about the genetics

Smoky cream = black (E_, a/a) + Cr/Cr. Visually hard to tell apart from cremello and perlino; a DNA test gives certainty.

What is this colour often confused with?

  • Cremello

    An almost white, cream-coloured chestnut with pink skin and blue eyes.

  • Perlino

    Like cremello, but on a bay base: slightly warmer mane and tail.

Discover more

PalominoBuckskinSmoky blackCremelloTest your knowledge in the quizAll coat colours

Sources: UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory · Sponenberg, D.P. & Bellone, R.R. (Wiley-Blackwell).