Madness & Civilization #16
Hill Farmstead Brewery

 

Bottled on 1/5/2021; consumed on 3/23/2023

Pours a stark, motor-oil black body capped with a finger and a half of creamy, hazelnut-hued foam; solid head retention yields a paper-thin layer of cap, large, frothing collar, and a haphazard spatter of soapy, webby lacing draping down the walls of the glass.

Aromas of soft, creamy vanilla underscore heavily roasted coffee and baked walnuts, with caramel and black licorice accents finding a subtle dark fruit inflection over time.

Taste shows burnt marshmallow upfront as black licorice imbues a charry roast sweetened softly with coffee edges, leaving milk chocolate through the mid-palate as bourbon coats the back end of the profile.

Mouthfeel brings a body on the lighter end of medium along with a rounded fluff of moderate carbonation easing into a glossy acridity; the mid-palate embraces a creamy overtone while an airy prickle lingers through the back end into drying roastiness on the finish.

An understated, thoughtful blend exuding the subtle intermingling of coffee and vanilla alongside a deft fusion of barrel-aged styles; the exact sort of high-end nuance expected of Hill Farmstead.

 

 

 

This one pours a very dark black color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like vanilla, sweet but earthy maple, with lots of creamy and nougaty milk chocolate, some roast, and a hint of coffee.

There’s a type of coffee in this that honestly sounds quite good, but it really blends into the overall flavor profile of this beer. Maybe the coffee gives off a fairly maple and vanilla type flavor, or maybe that’s the bourbon barrels and the fact that Beyond Good and Evil is a maybe big part of this blend. There’s tons of rich chocolate here, with a touch of roast as well.

This is medium bodied, and super creamy, with a great drinkability, and basically no booziness.

Even though the coffee is relatively subtle here, it’s still one of the better entries in this series in a bit now.

 

Dark dark brown with bountiful and sticky tan head. Big coffee and cocoa nose, with a pleasing and balanced background sweetness on the palate. Rich smooth mouthfeel with moderate to minimal carbonation.

8 ball black with a short but persistent tan head that retains well as a flatly level chocolate milk-colored blanket.

One of the most bourbon forward beers I've had out of Hill, the nose is exceptionally woody, charred and caramelized, but also nutty and chocolatey.

Taste immediately starts with smoothing vanilla that extends beyond the start all the way through to the finish, while allowing chocolate to rise in the middle and drying oak in the swallow.

The body is moderately light yet softly crisp, finishing paper dry and exhaling fudgie brownie crust.

It really is amazing how chocolatey this is considering it is coffee that was added here, and not chocolate.