Smuttlabs Chocolate Banana Split
Smuttynose Brewing Company

Smuttynose Brewing Co. "Smuttlabs Chocolate Banana Split"
16 fl. oz. can. Production/freshness dating is completely illegible.
$3.99 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: It appear that this is made with real ingredients except for the vanilla extract which is totally fine by me. It's poured an opaque black body beneath a massive head of tan foam. The aroma is basically stout-like but there is a little bit of banana. It doesn't quite come acorss as banana though, which is a little weird as you're getting some fruitiness but you can't really pinpoint it. The taste, unfortunately, is pretty much the same. I get a lot of stout, a little bit of banana, some vanilla, and a touch of cocoa nibs. Because the extra flavors are limited it just comes off as weird. The same thing that happens in the aroma with the banana happens again here. There's also a pretty firm bitterness that runs through it, disrupting what's there. That's not to say that I want a sweet beer, just that the balance isn't working real well. I do, however, actually feel that a sweeter beer would have worked better here. You've already got some dark malt acidity and roastiness to deal with, and that along with a milder bitterness would have probably been enough to balance it. Perhaps the main problem here is the grain bill itself. This is a very dark beer and I really don't think it needed to be. It's kind of one way or the other - if you're going to add cacao nibs, banana puree, and vanilla extract you should probably go a little lighter on the dark malts to let that stuff come through, but if you're just doing an Imperial stout you can go for it all you want. (I still generally think that too much dark malt is a bad thing, especially when you start hitting that dark malt acidity). The alcohol is well cloaked, and you do get a beer of 8% so at least there's that. The head held up really well initially, and it did leave some lacing behind but it's not great. In the mouth it's medium bodied and gently crisp once the initial carbonation has 'burned off'. It's also warmed up a bit which is an improvement, but which also hasn't really changed anything. All in all I find this beer to be a bit of a failure. It doesn't seem to have hit the mark at all for what I think they were going for, and in fact, the banana and vanilla extract may have hurt what might have otherwise been a decent Imperial stout. I doubt that they added a lot of cacao nibs in here as I barely pick up on them, and I'll assume that was done for money. I can accept that they've gone with vanilla extract because the price for vanilla beans is through the roof, and lets face it, it's a processing issue as well. If you're going to do something, do it, don't just throw it in to say you did.
Review #7,894

Pours jet black with mahogany highlights. The head is thin, short lived dark beige foam. It’s just kind of blah, meh. There is a ring, and no lace. My double walled pint glass feels gyped. No worries pal, I’ll make it up to you another day.

Mild roasted malt gives way to… nothing. That’s all she wrote folks. Let us wait to smell what warmth might do. …..…………… Ok, it’s a stretch, but sure, there is some faint banana after about five minutes. Maybe.

Ok folks, the stage has been set. What will we find in the flavor department? The meh factor is off the charts. Imagine the aroma, toss in a touch of baker’s chocolate, BAM! Bob’s your uncle. But what about the finish. Well, you got your mild roast, some modest bitterness balanced by sweetness, and, well, that’s it. We’re done here.

Mind you, this is an IMPERIAL Stout. So of course, we got a light body. Silky smooth texture, light fine carbonation, ok, that’s good. Right? And the alcohol, well, that’s gotta be over the top right? NOPE! To be fair, it is labeled as 8%, but come-on, give me something, a little heat, maybe a nibble. Nothing! It drinks like a 6% beer. PASS!

If anyone is reading this, I’ll admit, it could be considered a decent first attempt at home brewing a regular old stout. But seriously, Smuttynose knows how to brew beer, lots of good stuff. This ain’t one of ‘em. It lacks everything it claims to be. And it claims to be great. A Banana Split is over the top. So is an American Imperial Stout. I mean, “IMPERIAL” right.

Poured from a 16 oz. can. Has a black color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of chocolate, roasted malts. Taste is the same as the aroma, I'm not really getting any banana. Feels medium/full bodied in the mouth and overall is a decent beer.

 

 

Very boring for what was anticipated by the label and name. Pretty much an okay stout with some notes of cocoa. Not horrible, but zero banana detected in either aroma or flavors, real or fake. Split with a friend who also could not find either banana or chocolate. I don't expect much from these folks nowadays, but glad this was gifted to me and free.

 

Pours dark. Tan foam. Banana aroma. Not that great. Medium banana body. Fades to a bitter cocoa finish. Not enough sweetness. Tastes like a bitter banana peel. Chocolate should be more present. This should have been way better than it is.