Latte Stout
Neptune's Brewery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reviewing this right now in Moav coffee shop, downtown Billings, Montana. First time here, nice place. $5 on tap, looks about 12-14 ounces, but might be a pint, just weird-shaped glass. But he gave it to me for $3 because they would normally have a happy hour on any other day. Not today, but he let it slide. I may have had this before at some local beer event, but can't be sure. Local brewery and name rings a bell.

Very dark brown mostly opaque, can see minimal light around the edges but it's not very bright outside, or in. Head is a fluffy, puffy lighter tan foam, of decent retention. Fairly clean smell for what it is, just faint malty sweetness and roast. Palate is very tight roasty bitterness, can definitely taste the coffee bean, even has a vegetal quality to it. Then some sweeter notes in the periphery, not quite molasses. Following is leafy and soily to almost soapy/rindy hops. Not distracting, and perfectly in balance. I do prefer a slightly sweeter stout, whether from alcohol or malt or something else, but "Porters/Stouts" are still possibly my favorite meta-style, next to "Sours" and/or Dunkel/Doppel Lagers/Hefes, so I can't help but take joy in this beer. I'd call it an espresso stout rather than a latte stout, but I get why the brewery might want to mix things up a bit and shy away from what everyone else is calling their coffee stout. Medium-bodied, fine and prickly at the start, softening to smooth cream. Can scarcely detect any alcohol, amazing for this moderately high ABV.

 

a nice creamy stout here, dry and smooth, with a good hit of coffee to it. maybe not quite as decadent and dairy driven as a latte, but a passable use of the name given the richness and creamy nature of the beer. matte black with a half inch of head on it, almost looks like a nitro pour, imprenetrable to light and very attractive. the aroma is coffee first, maybe a cold brew, concentrated and lacking the harsher elements of coffee. the roasted barley is right behind it, with maybe a little milk sugar sweetness here. the flavor follows the nose, coffee first, with a light maple note to it, followed by a deep chocolate and black barley element, finally a smooth grainy creamy thing, almost like grits or something, starchy but mellow, a great texture for this beer, some bubbles to keep it moving too. not overly coffee, a lot of these are just going too far away from beer these days, so nice to see one so flavorful but yet so rightly proportioned to feature the coffee without letting it completely take over the beer. have not had nearly enough beer from these neptune folks, this is very good!

 

 

Pours a dark brown color. 1/3 inch head of an off-white color. Great retention and great lacing. Smells of coffee, sweet malt, and slight roasted malt. Fits the style of an American Stout. Mouth feel is sharp and clean, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of coffee, sweet malt, roasted malt, hint of hop. Overall, good appearance, decent aroma and body, but the finish is slightly watery/weak.

 

Incredibly easy drinking. Packed with flavor. Light mouthfeel but not watered down. Pleasantly surprised with. Really good