Stoutmaker.beer

Coffee beers have always been a thorn in my side. I probably drink more coffee in one day, than the average family does in a month.. but put it in a beer, and its crap.

I dunno if it’s a chemical thing or some voodoo stuff, but it never works out.
Yet I will always try a new one.

Such as this Ahnapee Breakfast Drip.

Billed as a session stout (arrrg, this love/hate thing today with descriptions).
Well, on with the show…

The tap poured pint came with very little, if any head at all. But as with most coffee stouts or coffee beers in general that I’ve had, this is pretty normal. The oils from the coffee really mess with the head retention.

The black beer looks quite tasty, though not opaque black. No signs of carbonation bubbles.

First two things I get from this beer are chocolate. Lots of chocolate or coco aroma here. In a good way. And second is what I was fearing.. the dreaded soured coffee aroma. But luckily.. it’s not as bad or strong as it usually seems to be.
Other than a slight bit of roast,, the chocolate dominates everything. No hops no yeast esters.

Pleasantly surprised at the first taste because I was expecting to get a blast of that sour coffee,, but it’s not there. The first taste is roast.. and it should if it’s a stout. There is coffee there,, but it’s secondary to the actual stout. A very good stout in fact.

The coffee notes are bold, but not over powering. And more like green coffee beans, not heavily burnt or roasted beans and I think that’s whats keeping them from getting that sour, oxidized taste.

I’d say the body is just shy of medium. Fits in with this style of probably dry stout. Very little hop taste, but a good bittering.
Carbonation is fairly high for a stout, but they may be trying to work the low head retention. But even this high it seems to work quite well.

I must say I am impressed with this coffee stout. I was full prepared to not like it. But it did things right. It showed off the stout first, then let the coffee do it’s thing behind it.

I can and will have more of this for sure. And honestly is the best coffee beer I ever had.
4.5/5

I picked up a bottle of this to head down to our weekly Wednesday tastings. Mostly because of the name.

Karben 4 Diet Starts Tomorrow Oatmeal Stout.

Karben 4 usually has pretty good beers, and sure this will be another. So let’s get to it.

This pours black with a very thin head. But that thin head does fit if there is a decent amount oatmeal used. That oil from the oats kinda knocks it down.

And wow does this smell like oatmeal! And almost as upfront is Coco. Man, this smells fantastic. A bit of black malt sneaks in there too.

And the tastes are nearly exactly what is in the nose. Coco, light bits of black malt, the oatmeal is a bit subdued in the taste, but with it still blasting from the aroma,, it’s enough.

Not overly sweet or bitter, but I would say it leans more to the sweet side because there is no real hop presence in bittering or taste.

I do find it odd that the body is quite thin for as much oatmeal as it seems there is.. however that could be due to the higher than “normal” carbonation. It’s high enough to feel it prickle your tongue. Or,, possibly, did they use powdered Coco?? That sometimes plays weird things with body.

All in all, this is a fantastic beer. Definitely worth a try just for the aromas if nothing else. I certainly would buy this one again.

I’m going to have to give this a very solid.. 4.25/5