Chelsea Dry Irish Stout
Chelsea Brewing Company

On tap at the brewery. Contains rye, which I like although it did not add much value here. Rye gives it a kick, there is also chocolate malt. It's a sipper, with fruitiness. Aggressive on palate, which I found throughout the product line on tap here. Jet black with red highlights, a whisper of a head. Faint cloudy lace.

This beer looks like a stout should – near black with about 1.5” of very dense tan head -- miniscule bubbles courtesy of the nitro tap, which left excellent retension all the way down the pint glass, like the strata of a sandstone canyon. Didn’t smell like much, though. Faint aromas of chocolaty roasted malt, but something almost unpleasant was there too – I know nitrogen doesn’t have an odor, but could it impart a metallic component to a beer’s scent? Too faint to really turn me on or off.

But once this beer crossed my lips, I was sold. Started a bit nutty before the malts kicked in. Tempered by a slight bitter hop, the malts expertly toed the line between bitter roasted coffee and creamy sweet chocolate, but it was all very subtle. The whole thing was perfect on nitro – the carbonation gave this stout a super creamy mouthfeel before the dry finish kicked in to leave you awaiting another sip. Or another pint. If they had this on the regular tip throughout NYC, I’d never drink a Guiness (probably my favorite macro) again.

Note: I was surprised to see this beer had never been reviewed before as, though this was my first time trying it, I had seen it on menus before. I called the brewery, and they said it's brewed year-round -- I assume it doesn't get a lot of distribution, probably only to local craft beer bars. Keep an eye out for it.