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Tonight I’m at Medici in Normal, IL. A few members of our homebrew club are working on a beer for the Chicago Beer Hoptacular club competition. Before the meeting I thought I’d grab a beer. I didn’t recognize this beer or brewery, so I looked it up on my phone. The brewery is located in Amherst, WI, and the beer had some pretty good reviews, so I thought I’d give it a shot and add it to my list.
Location: On tap and served in a snifter glass a Medici in Normal, IL.
Numbers: 7.5% ABV, ~ 250 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s dark brown, almost black in color with a thin, tan, creamy head. After a couple of minutes, the head fell, leaving a thin ring of bubbles around the edge of the glass. There was an obvious aroma, filled with dark chocolate, molasses, roasty dark malt, and coffee smells.
Taste & Feel: The body was medium and the mouthfeel was smooth with little carbonation. The flavor up front was semi-sweet with lots of cocoa, chocolate, and molasses. These flavors continued through the middle, with some more coffee and roasted malt coming through. The finish was more coffee flavors with a bit of bitterness that seemed to be a mix of coffee-like bitterness and earthy hops. The coffee and chocolate like flavors lasted for a minute or so in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: This beer had lots of dark chocolate, molasses, and coffee-like flavors, but the body was fairly light and the mouthfeel smooth. Therefore, I’d pair this with a rich chocolate dessert, as the flavors in the beer would mix nicely, but the lighter body and smooth mouthfeel would help to wash down the dessert.
Overall Impression: I really enjoyed both the aroma and flavors in this beer. It was a bit on the lighter side, both in body and ABV, and I felt it could have been a bit creamier, otherwise I would have given it a better score. Overall, I thought it was a pretty good beer, giving plenty of flavor with a lower than the normal imperial stout ABV. If given a chance, I’d definitely have one again.
My Rating: 
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