I was awoken this morning by my wife cleaning our bedroom, announcing she had a list of things for me to do today. I knocked out most of the stuff on the list, and even went to the gym today. So, I decided to reward myself with a beer tonight. This was part of a bunch of beers my sister brought back from her trip to Cincinnati and gave me for Christmas.
Location: Poured into a snifter glass at my home in Bloomington, IL
Numbers: 7% ABV, ~220 Calories
Ingredients: Malts: 2 row, pale chocolate malt, munich, caramunich, special B; Hops: Cascade; Other: Roasted Cacao Nibs; Yeast: House Ale
Appearance & Aroma: It’s black in color with some dark brown highlights barely visible when held up to the light. The head fell quickly to a thin ring of tan bubbles around the edge of the glass. The aroma is dark chocolate with a little bit of roastiness.
Taste & Feel: The body is solidly medium and the mouthfeel is smooth and a little oily. The flavor up front is mostly roasty with some dark chocolate flavors. In the middle, the dark chocolate sweetness really grows, with the roasty flavors and bitterness right behind it. The finish is a mix of dark chocolate and roasty flavors tied together with some dry roasty bitterness. The aftertaste is roasty bitterness with some chocolate flavors behind it, and it lasts for a minute or so.
Food Pairing: This beer has a lot of dark chocolate and roasty flavors and bitterness. Therefore, in order to balance the bitterness a bit, I think I would contrast these flavors with some fruity sweetness and creaminess, such as a raspberry topped cheesecake. I think the roastiness could also complement something like a steak as well.
Overall Impression: I thought the chocolate aroma and flavor was good, but I thought the roastiness added a little more bitterness than I was expecting. It’s a good, unique beer, and I think it could have been improved a little with some more creaminess. If you like dark chocolate, you’ll probably like this beer as well, but don’t expect it to be very sweet, as the bitterness easily wins out. Overall, it was a good beer, and I’d like to try a few more of their offerings.
My Rating: 
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