No. 06 Oatmeal Stout
Gella's Diner & Lb. Brewing Co.

4.13/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pours black with a finger of khaki head. Aroma is roasty, toasty malts with a kiss of lactose. There is a little chocolatey backend, but not much. Flavor profile brings out the chocolate more, with earthy, roasty and toasty malts forming the bulk of the flavor. Mouth feel is medium-thick with a lightly fuzzy, but more so, velvety texture. Overall, focused with no frills. It's a solid oatmeal stout.

Draft.

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4.25/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Appearance: A hard pour from the growler reveals a modest bubble show that creates an inch of tan foam - I know this would have been more impressive at the brewery; the liquid is coffee colored with tawny highlights at the edge

Smell: Caramel and chocolate

Taste: Caramel and chocolate, with vanilla building and a hint of dark fruit; some earthy hop bitterness in the back end and, perhaps, a little coffee in the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation; rather creamy

Overall: A very nice oatmeal stout, with rich flavor and a very nice mouthfeel

Thanks, SDDLSK, for the opportunity

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4.01/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Poured from a growler dated 1/8/16; into a pint glass.
Appearance - very dark, but not completely black, almost like a cup of coffee with milk. Thin tan head that leaves scattered lacing along the back of the glass.
Smell - subtle chocolate milk and mild coffee notes.
Taste - this reminds me of a glass of chocolate milk blended with a roasted, malty stout; there's hints of vanilla after it sits.
Feel - medium body; creamy and silky; easy drinker!
Overall - very tasty, smooth, creamy, well crafted stout!

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3.91/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Rich oat and coffee roast aroma. Flavor is roasty and oaty, with a coffee bitter finish. They really nail the oat presence, and the roast is nicely done.

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4.18/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

From BeerAdvocate magazine Issue #68 (Spetember 2012):

LOOK: Almost black, thick tan head, showy lacing

SMELL: Caramel, dark berries, creamed dark roast coffee, mild chocolate

TASTE: Very creamy, silky fullish body, brown bread, oat sweetness, black berries, loaf of bread, balanced hops, mild bitterness, carob, chicory bite, semi-sweet finish

Bordering on the sublime, the richness and full flavor does not get in the way of quaffing this one back. Oats play well, perhaps the perfect amount as they don’t weight down the beer but you know it is there. Easily makes drinking beer fun, excellent job.

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4.17/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Growler fill poured into a FW snifter.

Growler filled on 12/20/12, consumed with the BIL's while smoking a prime rib for Christmas dinner. A difficult task in the 10 degree weather.

An aggressive pour yields a 1.5 finger head. It recedes to a thin collar with some soapy spots forming along the surface. Color is a cloudy brown, deep mahogany on the edges.

Smell is full of deep chocolate, some toffee, and coconut. There's a nutty earthiness and some roast. It finishes with a hint of sweet vanilla.

Taste is deep roasted coffee and chocolate. There's a nice bit of bitterness that is balanced by the same sweet finish found on the nose. A nice overall flavor that I am really enjoying sip after sip.

This beer feels like an imperial. Definitely the most impressive part of this Oatmeal Stout. It's chewy and runs amok across the palate. Well done.

Overall, I am impressed by this offering. This was my first brew from LB, but I look forward to trying more.

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4.3/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Two fingers of tan head, pitch black colored body.
Great smell of coffee and chocolate and roasted malt.
Taste has a fair bitter element to it, with a creamy background, bits of chocolate and coffee too.
Soft and creamy texture, low carbonation and a thick body.
An amazing oatmeal stout. A top example.

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4.32/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I tried this at Gellas and bought a growler to take all the way back to TX.

Nice dark appearance. Nice head on it on tap at the brewery.

Smell was nice too, you can smell the roasted malts.

Taste was where this one stands out. Incredible. Roasted, chocolately but not heavy. Perfect balance of flavors. Refreshing yet "stout" as well.

Decent mouthfeel, not too watery or too heavy.

If I lived near this place, which I just happened upon travelling to SD, I would be there all the time.

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4.12/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Had this at Gella's diner on-tap. Pours a very dark creamy beer, but with very little head and not that much lacing on the way down.

Smells oatmeal stoutish - roasted malts, mostly. Not as strong as some.

Very, very good taste. This is the beer's strong point. The perfect blend of caramel sweetness balanced by roasted malts.

Creamy. Full bodied without being chunky. Extremely drinkable.

Stouts aren't my favorite session beers. This is an exception. I could have several.

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4.1/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

77th review on BA
Growler to pint

App- Poured the brown of a watered down soda without a big head but I expected that after driving from KS to CA with it.

Smell- I got some chocolate milk scent mixed with beer. I liked the smell.

Taste- An incredibly smooth stout. Some big flavors that are very well done but don't come across too strong.

Mouth- A medium carb. with a great finish. I can see why it's an award winner.

Drink- A very good beer all around. Very easy to drink. 64oz came and went very quickly.

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4.17/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Reviewed from notes. On tap at the brewpub in August 2009.

Pours a very dark brown color, appearing black unless it's held up to the light. The tan head has pretty good retention, but doesn't stick around for all that long. Nose is roasted malt, chocolate, coffee, and a bit of light toffee and caramel. Really nice and complex. The taste is pretty nice with some roast and coffee plus chocolate. The mouthfeel is what really helps the taste out; nice and creamy. Overall, by far their best beer and one that I enjoyed quite a bit.

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4.48/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

The Oatmeal Stout offered by Liberty Brewing of Hays, Kansas, is arguably their flagship beer. I had a chance recently to stop by Gellas / LB and came away thoroughly impressed, particularly with their stouts. I picked up growlers of both the Liberty Stout (a delicious American Stout) and the Oatmeal Stout, which I'm preparing to sample now. In many ways I'll be comparing this to the aforementioned Liberty Stout, which I had earlier today and really enjoyed.

This one pours dark, though when comparing it side by side next to the Liberty it is browner and thinner in appearance. A beige tan head caps the brew, with some nice silky lacing. The aroma is more subdued as well, and less pronounced. Mouthfeel is appropriately slick for the style, with medium bitterness and little in the way of carbonation.

The taste is subdued as well, but I like it. There's nothing bold about the beer, but that's a good thing. Roasted walnut is up front, with some light sweetness in the middle and earthy bitterness in the finish. Yum. It's really easy drinking. I'm halfway into this review and about halfway through my glass. The oatmeal is there, in the middle, and I know it's adding to the body of the beer. This is a light and refreshing take on the style, if that's possible. I want to use the usual descriptors when talking about this beer (toasty, chocolate, etc.), but they aren't really present in this brew. It's more mild, roasted, and smooth. For some reason I think of malt-o-meal, which I haven't had in ages. Maybe it's the whole oatmeal-breakfast thing that's taking me there.

In terms of oatmeal stouts this one is up there with Samuel Smith's, Free State's, and uh yeah, that's about it. Probably top 3 for me, which is pretty impressive for a brewery out in the middle of nowhere, Kansas. It's crazy to think that this brewery is pumping out great beer like this. I'll be going back, for sure.

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4.37/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Very deep brown color almost black with a brown tint. The head comes in at a thin nice mocha color.

Very heavy oat smell along with a toffee, coffee and dark chocolate a good mix but weighted towards the grain.

The taste is reminiscent of the smell, but with more complexity. The oat fades to more of a smoothness that intertwines with the light caramel and the heavier flavors of the dark chocolate and coffee.

This is one smooth tasty oatmeal stout. A real good sipper. If your ever in western Kansas (and I don't wish that on anyone) at least you can stop by Liquid Bread for some awesome beer.

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4.38/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Now this is more like it. I felt their IPA fell short of the style, but this one is really good. A good thick looking, but clean pour with off tan foam sitting atop the black liquid bread (nice, huh?)

Balance of the coffee, chocolate and dark fruit is great. None stand out, but all are present. Raisin and toffee come and go. Good dry smack to it to let in the malt. Dark chocolate. Easy drinking. This one can be dangerous.

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4.4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

My pint arrived an opaque, espresso black with some ruby hues along the meniscus which were only visible when held up to sunlight. Two finger tan head dissipated after a little while to a clingy ring. Decent lacing. Aromas of chocolate malts, coffee and some caramel sweetness. The flavors were downright delicious. Brown sugar, maple, coffee, charcoal (heavily roasted malt) and hints of black licorice. Slightly tart as it warms and the hosp provide some balance. Complex and developed like the girl you had a crush on in high school. Long finish. Full bodied without being heavy, smooth and generally well thought out. Great theory and equal execution. Bravo, nowhere Kansas!

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4.2/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

my pint arrives black, with a tall beige foamy head. After quickly receding, I am pleasantly surprised by the staying power of the final quarter inch of creamy cap.

Nose features coffee, but it is rather mild and not overly roasted. Chocolate follows in cocoa powder form, and there is a nice toffee background.

Flavor follows aroma but in amped up fashion. This is a rich brew. I'd like to session it but I generally feel pretty full after a couple. Body feels quite full, with a nice creaminess. Carbonation has been a little hit and miss - sometimes spot on, sometimes a bit prickly.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, delicious beer. In addition to the chocolate and toffee I get a hint of liquorice, balancing hop bitterness plus a bit of bitter char. In addition to the moderately bitter finale the finish is slightly sweet and dry.

as mentioned, it isn't quite as drinkable for me as I'd like. Then again, as I'm always on a road trip when coming here, I suppose that's a good thing. Very good beer, highly recommended.

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4.33/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours coal black with a dark brown fine creamy 3 finger head. Aroma of caramel, coffee and chocolate malts. Flavors follow with a medium full mouthfeel and excellent complexity suggesting a Kalamazoo Stout! Perfect finish with lingering malts and well bounced hop bitterness. A absolute session beer!

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