It’s a Saturday night and I had to drop off my son off at a party he was attending at Medici. Since we had nothing else going on tonight, I thought I’d stick around for a beer before I left. This looked like a pretty unique beer on tap, and especially since it was on nitro, I thought I’d give it a try.
Location: On tap and served in a tumbler style pint glass at Medici in Normal, IL.
Numbers: 5.5% ABV, 35 IBUs, ~130 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s deep brick-red in color and very clear. It has a very nice, silky smooth head on it with a tinge of pink to it. The aroma is a bit sweet and is almost like a light chocolate cake.
Taste & Feel: The body is medium and the mouthfeel is smooth and creamy from the nitro. The flavor up front is a bit sweet and tastes exactly what red velvet cake (without the icing) tastes like. Some bitterness comes out in the middle covering the sweetness a little bit. However, in the finish, the bitterness overtakes the sweetness a bit, but it’s still very well balanced, and the red velvet cake flavor is still quite present. The earthy, slightly chocolate-like bitterness lasts for a minute in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: Red velvet cake of course, but a steak would be a great contrast to pair with this beer.
Overall Impression: This beer tastes exactly what it sounds like – red velvet cake (without the icing). It has a nice light chocolaty flavor and aroma, and the fact that it’s on nitro gives it the perfect texture. It’s not overly sweet either, with a great balance, and the bitterness even edges out the sweetness at some points. While this isn’t a beer I might drink all of the time, it’s a tremendously good dessert beer – and while it tastes like dessert, you still feel like you’re drinking a beer. Overall, this was a great beer, perfectly complemented by the nitro.
My Rating: 
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