Straight Pipe Stout
Old Capitol Brew Works and Public House

This was served at the Old Capitol Brew Works and Public House into a pint glass.

Appearance- A very dark brown body that is completely opaque.There is a slight ring of cocoa colored foam at the top of the beer.

Smell- Sweet chocolate and roasted malt are the most prominent on the nose. There is a sweet tang that could be interpreted as dark fruit, like dates.

Taste- The roasted malt that is borderline coffee roast serves as the backbone of the beer. That dark fruit flavor is also strong in the back of the throat. The cocoa nib comes out late in the drink, but it is a welcome addition. That roasted malt hangs on a long time. There is also a distinct, chocolatey aspect in the finish.

Mouth feel- It is definitely creamy and an easy drinker, but the body really should be bigger. I don't like that I want to classify this as watered down. Just a bit small for this stout.

Overall- This stout is good, and I would definitely get it again if I saw it on tap. It could just be so much better. The biggest thing has to be the mouth feel. Also, the flavors are a tad bit generic, which is fine if the flavors already present are as big as they could be, which they aren't here.

This beer is now being shipped in from "River City Brewing" in the Quad Cities, according to the design on the tap handle. I think Old Capitol is outsourcing all their beer now.

A--Black color with a thick finger of head that left rings around the pint glass with every sip

S--Faint coffee and roasted malts, pretty standard

T--This wasn't too heavy on any of the flavors that I want in my stouts, it was fairly basic with hints of coffee. The milky creaminess was also present in the taste, but nothing stood out at all. Fairly standard

M--There was a milky creaminess present but it was also slightly watery, pretty good overall though

D--Two pints and I was sick of it, but it went down smooth and I enjoyed it for a while

This is not worth seeking out, but if you are already at the Old Capitol it is worth ordering

Served chilled in a tumbler. A (very) slow pour produced plenty of rocky dark-tan head from the can, with excellent lacing. Pours dark and opaque, black to the eye, and exhibits crimson and deep burnt sienna characteristics when held up to direct sunlight. Nose is heavy on the dark roasted malts, with a pleasant smokey character, espresso notes, and slightly oily and tangy as well. Sweet and tangy on first sip, as well as chalky and unctious . . . is this their cream stout? Some light espresso and heavier cocoa/chocolate notes, a touch (*very light*) of green apple and iodine and more of that smoke from the nose . . . if this is a bock it's quite a ways off-stye (unless maybe it's a smoked bock), and seeing MABZ's description of the Aaaah Bock I know the old Stone City bock was fairly earthy, but this drinks far more to style as a cream stout. Lingering chalky character and medium bitterness, fairly dry and bitter in the finish . . . it fits the style. Body is medium-full, with fairly minimal carbonation (once it's out of the can) and a creamy mouthfeel. Very, very drinkable for the style, and there's none of that intense sweetness I've had from many milk stouts. Way to fool a guy with the self-adhhesive labels! I hope the Stout can has some bock in it; on second thought naw, I enjoyed this brew more than I do most bocks . . . a cream stout this well rendered is few and far between, and it's in a CAN, too! Worth seeking out.

The lacing doesn't break from it's pattern until it is warmed a bit, but that's the same with many beers.

The smell is heavy with coffee and has a slight cocoa/chocolate backround to it.

The taste is a spike of a little hoppiness that's overtaken by an expresso-like coffee flavor that mixes with the hops and creates a new bitter. The backround does have a slight creamy flavor to it, but it is very suddle.

The mouthfeel is nice, but somewhat watery, still has smoothness to it.

It will be nice to re-visit this beer in Old Capitol.

Deep, dark black. You don't get opacity like this very often, especially from brew pub stouts.

Smells of heavy roasted malt and milk chocolate. The two odors mingle very well together, and in spite of its simplicity the scent is intense enough to really work.

Starts off tasting like fire roasted grain and chocolate malt, then it goes into an intense sweetness--like Hershey's syrup--before coming down again into a great, semisweet stout grain that lingers with a great bitter aftertaste.

It's really rare that you come across a brewpub beer this good, especially from a pub as overlooked as Old Capital.

AP:Almost black. Think light brown creamy head. Nice lace.

AR: Dry cocoa powder. Milk Chocolate. Lactose...in a big way. Biscuity malts.

TST: Great milky sweet chocolate character. Cry cocoa residue left on tongue. Dry aftertaste. A little roasted bitterness and char. Very nice tasting.

MF: Medium-light body. Appropriately light in carbonation.

DK: Very drinkable. Tasty and easy going. Milk Stouts this good are few and far between.


Thanks for sharing Big Ol ZAP!!

The brewer told me he got sick of making 3.5% abv dry stouts and trying to explain to people that they had no more calories or alcohol than the light beers they were drinking so he said "F#@ck it..I'm gonna make a stout that when they say it's too big and thick for them I'll say "damn right it is...it is too much for you"...loved that story..

Dark brown...with dark cocoa and coffee grounds on the nose...big and sweet with a lot of milk sugars in this....milk chocolate flavored not dark cocoa but good old swet milk chocolate...

Smooth, rounded, creamy and medium bodied..

Hell of a nice milk stout...reminds me some of the Watneys I used to love 10-to15 years ago...hard to fnd quality sweet stouts which makes this even more of a gem in my opinion...highly recommended.

This is a good drinkable stout that I've had a few times at the brewpub, but only got around to composing a review just now.

Poured into a nonick pint to a dark nutty brown color, showing through in ruby when held to the light. The head is a creamy white froth that sticks around throughout the pint and leaves a nice lacing.

The aroma is lightly roasty and nutty. Could use a bit of warming up from serving temp.

The taste mirrors the nose and amplifies the flavor. Sweet and malty, a bit of roasty chocolate malt, along with a handfull of other nutty, earthy flavors.

The mouthfeel is a little light, bit still has a bit of a creaminess. If only Iowa could LiftTheLimit.

This is quite a drinkable beer. It is not too robust, but it is certainly not bland and dumbed down. Recommended.