Beer Review: Schlafly Coffee Stout

I love my stouts….there’s nothing like a nice stout in front of a roaring fire on a cold winter’s day. The smoke of a wood fire complements very well the roasted malt, chocolate and coffee flavors of a good stout. So when I saw Schlafly Coffee Stout at the store, I was eager to give it a try. According to the bottle, “this oatmeal stout with natural flavor added uses locally roasted Kaldi’s coffee.” Let’s give this a try.

The Pour
My usual pour (the first half poured gently in a 45-degree glass, the other half poured vigorously into a glass straight up and down) gives the beer a two finger thick head that is beige in color and consists of dense pillowy foam. It dissipates relatively quickly, leaving a small bit of lacing on the glass. This is a very dark brown brew, with very faint tinges of red noticeable at the very narrowest part of the pint glass, where a tiny bit of light can peek through. This looks quite thick and full-bodied. After a couple of bottles, I noticed some floating particles at the bottom of the glass. Leftover coffee grounds from the brewing process? I’m not sure.

The Nose
There is definitely an oatmeal stout nose present, but with good coffee notes as well. Smells like a glass of freshly ground coffee beans. It has a good roasted scent and a very slight touch of sweetness, like hints of brown sugar or, more closely, molasses.

The Taste
My first taste was overpowering with coffee. It tasted like I was chewing up a bunch of espresso beans, then swigging from an oatmeal stout. It soon mellows, though, and the oatmeal stout flavor and the coffee flavors grow to balance each other. This is a full-bodied brew and starts off quite carbonated, but it mellows somewhat as it warms.

Overall
This is probably not something I’ll pick up quite often but it was definitely interesting. It ended up being better than I thought from my initial sip, but I prefer my stouts to have more subtle coffee flavors. I prefer the depth and character some stouts bring to the table, with a revolving cast of flavors from roasted malt to chocolate to caramel to hints of coffee. This coffee stout really kind of hits you over the head to remind you it is a coffee stout. It’s an aggressive beer, in the way some Rogue brews are aggressive in their flavors.

Recommended: If you like stouts but wish they tasted a LOT more like fresh espresso beans, sure!

Price: $8.29 / 6-pack

ABV: 5.7%

Beer Review: New Belgium Brewing’s Mighty Arrow Pale Ale

Part 4 of a (now) 4 Part Series

Part I: Fat Tire Amber Ale
Part II: Mothership Wit Organic Wheat Beer
Part III: 1554 Enlightened Black Ale
Part IV: Mighty Arrow Pale Ale

Cheers,
The Beer Snob

Mrs. Beer Snob and I had some friends coming over for dinner one night last week, so I cruised on over to the new Kroger here in Spring Hill to see what sort of beer I could find that we could try, that I could also review. When I saw a new (to us Tennesseans, anyway) New Belgium beer, I grabbed it.

Mighty Arrow is one of their seasonal beers, a Spring pale ale. According to the neck of the bottle…

Mighty Arrow Pale Ale provides lots of pleasurable sniffs from Cascade and Golding hops, with a fetching honey malt base.

Incidentally, this beer is apparently named after a dog, hence the “sniffs” and “fetching” references on the neck of the bottle.

The Pour
A pour with the glass at 45 degrees, followed by the other half of the pour poured vigorously into the glass, results in a two finger thick, off-white dense head that quickly becomes loose and pillowy. This beer is a great coppery hue and is very clear. Very little carbonation activity is seen. The head leaves an average amount of lacing on the side of the glass.

The Nose
This smells first and foremost of grapefruit and honey, with hints of a slightly bitter floral hoppiness. Judging by the nose, you expect the beer to be full-bodied.

The Taste
The taste is much more about dry floral hops than the grapefruit and honey, though the honey is definitely present in undertones. The beer is medium-light bodied with a crisp mouthfeel. The finish is slightly hoppy and sharp but has a clean, refreshing feel to it as well.  

Overall
Overall, this is a good solid pale ale. It’s a good refreshing spring brew, meaning it still maintains some sweetness (through the honey malt base?) while also giving you the hoppiness you start to want as the days get slightly longer and warmer. As far as I’ve seen, with the four New Belgium brews I’ve tried so far, you really can’t go wrong with one of their beers.

Recommended: Sure! I would say they are a brewery that consistently (as far as I’ve seen so far) cranks out good to great beers.

Price: $7.99 / 6-pack

ABV: 6%

Beer Review: Samuel Adams Winter Lager

I purchased this beer to celebrate my passing an important test, allowing me to take upper level engineering courses. I have had Samuel Adams beers before, and generally like them fine, but I had never had their Winter Lager, so I thought I’d give it a shot.

According to the 6-pack packaging…

This rich and hearty lager is brewed with flavorful spices such as cinnamon, orange zest and fresh ginger. The character and complexity of Winter Lager add warmth to a winter evening, and is a welcome complement to any holiday table.

I didn’t notice until after I had finished at least my first bottle that the bottle refers to this as a “dark wheat lager brewed with winter spices”. Here goes the review.

The Pour
This pours to an orange-tinted maple syrup color. A very light tan head appears, about 1 1/2 fingers high, and leaves good lacing as it dissipates. This is a  very clear brew and looks to be at least somewhat crisp. 

The Nose
This smells tasty. The nose doesn’t come right out with any strong aromas to me, which makes me feel better about purchasing this beer. That probably means it won’t be overspiced. I can pick up hints of cinnamon and possibly the ginger. There is some maltiness and an ever so slight roasted scent.

The Taste
The first thing I noticed in the taste was the ginger. Not that it’s overpowering because it’s not at all. This has a medium-full body with an interesting mouthfeel. It seems to be creamy and round but it crisps a bit on the edges. I can taste hints of the cinnamon and orange mentioned on the packaging. There is almost a maple syrupy hint in the nose and taste that becomes noticeable as it warms, and it gets a little stronger by the end of the bottle.

Overall
This is a very smooth and rich brew. It’s creamy and carries a sweetness but is not at all cloying or overly sweet. The flavor profile is complex and interesting. I was a bit surprised to see it’s a wheat lager. I think this is a very tasty and enjoyable winter beer!

Recommended: Yes, without hesitation. It’s very well suited to the winter season without being heavy.

Price: $8.79 per six-pack

ABV: Beer Advocate says 5.8%