Oatmeal Stout
John Harvard's Brewery & Ale House

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On tap at the Cambridge location prior to Night of the Barrels 2011. Served in a pint glass.

Pour yields a very dark-looking brew with a nice off-white to tan head that sticks around for a few minutes before slowly receding down, leaving some leaving along its path. The nose hits first with some roast along with a bit of mild chocolate. As it warms, it unfortunately reveals a seedy underbelly, with some fairly prominent notes of diacetyl and butter. The flavor is a bit worse, as the chocolate and roast are hardly able to cover up most of the off-flavors. Unfortunate, as I normally have enjoyed nearly everything I've had at this place. Hopefully I just got a bad keg/batch, as otherwise I could see this brew having some promise.

I ordered this to warm up on a cold, rainy day and it really did the trick.

A - Poured a dark as night black with a creamy, tan head. Decent retention and lacing.

S - Smells of roasted malt and faintly of chocolate.

T - Taste is somewhat complex. Roasty hints of chocolate and coffee. Some hopppiness is there to balance the malt. Dry finish.

M - This is where the beer really excels. Medium bodied and velvety smooth. Its especially good in the first third or so when the creamy head is at its peak.

D - Smooth and flavorful, very drinkable.

Tried this on nitro tap at the cambridge location. According to the Andy Crouch beer book on New England they specialize in stouts at this establishment. I had just had Blue Fin by Shipyard on nitro at Federal Jack's in ME the day before so it was a good week. This choice was a no brainer. It was served up looking and smelling beautiful and tasted like creamy heaven. The expected half inch of dense creamy head was there and lasted til the last sip. True to the style this beer was very rewarding with notes of sweetness and roasty coffee and milk chocolate. Overall the beers at John Harvard's were very drinkable but the Oatmeal Stout was exceptional.

Enjoyed this one on tap...heard it was coming and could not wait to try...being such a fan of JH's darker offerings.
Arrived pitch black with a huge, frothy, tan head...literally went nowhere until halfway thru....leaving behind some perfect lacing with each and every sip.
Dark chocolate in the nose...vanilla, caramel.
Taste was incredibly delicous...flavors above with some green hops thrown in...taking away any sweetness I was expecting...very clean and dry in the finish.
Alcohol nowhere to be found and the oats really complement this stout.
Mouthfeel was full bodied and creamy...carbonation was perfect.
A must try if you are even remotely into the style.

Toasted Oatmeal Stout. OG 16.3. Nitro dispense. Black with clear ruby highlights. The nose offers fruit, sweetish toasty malt, and a flick of roastiness. The body is medium, smooth, and creamy. The fruitiness carries through to the flavor. Dry and roasty finish with some dark malt acidity.

Annoyed that they can get away with calling this an oatmeal stout. There was absolutely none of the chewy sweetness that I expect from such a brew. That being said, and my disappointment aside (I love oatmeal stout's), this would make a pretty decent stout. Beatufil tan head in this frothy opaque black brew. Looked great in the pint glass. A refreshing, yet thick, stout. Actually tasted quite good while still cold. Toffee and roasted malts predominate. Highly drinkable.

I docked the taste for not fitting within the style, but it actually tastes pretty good.

Nice chewy oatmeal stout. Went great with my lunch of enchiladas. Enjoyed from a nitro-tap on 4/4.

Poured a very near midnight black. Big frothy head that was stained brown. Carpets of lace. Nose was a split between sour milk and sweetness from the oats.

Full flavored and oaty sweetness going on in this beer. Subtle hints of a mocha coffee too. A sour/bitterness rises slightly towards the end. Full body. Creamy and silky feel. Nice slow sipping beer.

Appears a black color with a light brown hue and a mild tan head. Scattered lacing appears all over the glass.
Smell is of true rolled oats and sugary cream with cocoa, and vanilla notes.
Taste is of the same aromas with mild cocoa and espresso coming through nicely.
Mouthfeel is smooth, and bitter of coffee and cocoa powder.

Was asked if I wanted brown sugar and milk with this one on 6/11/2005. 16-oz. pint pour at the Cambridge location, pre-fest staff meeting.

Giant down of slight mocha froth that settes to a tight rope. Deep, black, unfathomable hue but some nuts and bolts of action can be seen scudding up the edges. Caramel, burnt chocolate, raisins, and black pepper all conspire on the nose. Nice smoke toffee on the mouth with a great, sweet finish that leaves a nice coating.

Very good stuff - wish it was on more often.

This beer was on cask at John Harvard’s in Cambridge when I stopped for lunch today. It poured a deep brown with just a touch of ruby highlights. There was very little head on the beer. I attribute that more to the first pour of the day rather than the beer itself. It seemed a little cold to be coming from a cask, but the mouth feel and carbonation of the beer seemed correct. They need to move the cask to a slightly warmer area. The aroma was very subtle. Just a few hints of roasted malt, not much beyond that. The flavor had more of the roast malt along with a hint of espresso. There was a little citrus hop on the finish. The mouth feel was full and slightly slick, nice drinakbility. I’d like to try this beer at a better serving temperature, but it was still nice.

Right up there with Young's. This beer poured a beautiful black with head that stayed throughout. Smell was brunt malt and coffee....not as pronounced as I expected...could be beacuse it was a bit cold. The taste was a perfect blend of malt, coffee and smoke. The oatmeal made the mouthfeel extremely smooth, but with a very refreshing quality. Smooth, smooth, smooth...extremely drinkable.

Pours a black/dark brown, topped with a one finger creamy tan head. The head looked exactly like pancake batter with small bubbles trapped halfway out. Leaves sheets of lacing.
Sweet aroma, oats, lightly roasted malt, creamy.
Roasted malt comes out a lot more in the taste. Oats, earthy, robust taste. Note of anise. Burnt brown sugar aftertaste (a good thing).
Medium-full bodied and creamy.