Happy Feeling?

December 10, 2018

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Today I am having another local Brew. The Titletown Brewing Happy Feeling spiced coffee Porter. Sounds like a lot going on there.

I get the porter in the big mug. It arrives with a nice foamy tan head. Large bubbles?… Could be over carbonated? Could be a hard pour

The first aroma get is…celery? Yep celery leaves. But that quickly turns into coffee. Only way to describe it because i get no other roast, or sweet or hops. Maybe some grainy after it warms a bit.

Almost black but not quite. It’s got that Porter look of dark brown and clear as a bell.

Well I am happy it don’t taste like it smells. The taste skips over the celery and hits a coffee note. Subdued. But there. The roast again.. subtle. But just a bit more than the coffee.

As I was thinking “why there is no spice in this spiced beer.” The faintest bit of nutmeg hits me. You can feel the spice on the tongue more than taste it, but it fits I guess with all the other low impact things going on.

No hops in taste or aromas. Which is good for this particular beer or they would have completely covered everything else.

Carbonation doesn’t feel high as the head made it look like. But I like where it is because it covers the heavier body just a bit.

The more it warms the more that celery starts to poke out in the taste. Not that its a bad to thing here. And really, I’ve come to expect it in the few coffee stouts and porters I drink.

I am gonna go ahead and give this a solid 3.75 because it’s not something I would have normally ordered but glad I did.

Titletown’s Happy Feeling spiced coffee Porter

Local Ruffian

May 29, 2018

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Another local beer this time out! We are at Badger State Brewing on a brisk 95 degree day. Perfect stout weather!
Their offering today is the Dubious Ruffian chocolate stout. One of the few (maybe two) year round local stouts.

This is usually in cans but since I am at their tap room this came in a pint. And as usual with the beers here, they are waaay to cold. Like Bud light cold. So take that into account when ordering.

Right at the pour there is not much for head at all. A thin little tan film. But this is probably from the pre-mentioned cold. Jet, opaque black.
Even the cold cannot stop the chocolate and sweet grain aroma. Right from the get go you know this is a chocolate stout. No perceived hop, alcohol or yeast aromas, But as it starts to warm a bit of roast starts to show.

Even though the roast in the nose was minimal, it is there is taste. An easy non overpowering roasty with no sharpness or burnt. Quickly followed by chocolate. Like a bittersweet chocolate square kind of thing.

It’s sweet, I’ll say that. But not anywhere near being overly sweet. Pair that with the almost non existent bittering hop you would think this would be syrup. But it keeps it’s self in check. The thin body, dry finish and moderate carbonation helps this for sure. And the mid 6% packs just enough punch to make it fun, but not dangerous.

This is a decent chocolate stout, but it really is in dessert beer range. And I’m not sure, especially on a screaming hot day like today, if I could have more than one or two at a time. Sweet, thin, low roast. But I do like it. And drink it quite regularly.

3.75 rated from me.

Yin

May 19, 2018

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yin

The second Imperial Stout of the Craft Beer Week was Yin by EvilTwin. I have heard very little about this one.

Again this one came in a short snifter. Looks like a stout. Black yes, but somehow not like a “deep” black. I’m not even sure what that means, but thats what I see.

Before I can even reach out for it, I get a very strong waft of grape kool-aide. Not grapes, or grape juice. Grape Kool-aide. Anyone who knows me, know I have a very strong aversion to grape Kool-aide.

While my natural reaction was to immediately dump this beer on the floor and burn the place down,,  I forced myself to go ahead and drink it.

There are a whole lotta things you can taste all at once. Grape Kool-aide, cotton candy, wet grain, alcohol. Everything except roast or hops. I think if you closed your eyes and someone gave you this to try, you would say its a brown ale or some kind of amber.

Does seem quite boozy,, but seems like it should come with an umbrella in it. I can see why some people would like this, but it is not for me, and I’m not even sure I would call this a stout.

3/5 because I’m generous.

 

 

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