Mexican Coffee
Carton Brewing Company

Dark, reddish orange beer with a small off white head. Smells like cinnamon, spicy pepper, coffee tequila, vanilla and even a bit of chocolate. Tastes sweet and spicy with all of the aromas appearing in the taste. Finishes slightly bitter with a little of the peppery heat lingering after the swallow. Really well done beer and it is quite tasty.

Pouring from a 12 oz. can into a snulip glass, this beer pours out a murky, turbid dark shade of gold mixing with brown. It forms a pinky worth of bone white bubbles that dissipate to only leaving an outer ring attached to the glass and one small island. By far the least impressive on the looks out of the 4 “coffees” I’ve had from Carton. 3.25

The nose carries a slightly stinging pepper to it, cayenne, while also showing a more green, vegetal pepper as well. Tequila is present, while not overpowering. Wood/oak notes are showing as well. Sweet, rich coffee shows up towards the end. 4.75

The taste brings in beautifully rich, decadent, creamy coffee; caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, slight chocolate notes mixing with the barrel presence; dry oak/wood aspect, agave, spices like cinnamon, peppers and slight nutmeg maybe? 4.5

The mouthfeel offers a dried out wood feeling thanks to the oak barrels. Despite that, it still remains thick with sweetness, full bodied and well carbonated. Spices tingle the whole way through. 4.75

Overall, I think I’m officially a Carton “coffee” fan boy. If the last ones didn’t officially seal the deal, this did. They’re making the best cream ales out there, taking the style to another dimension. 4.75

 

Coffee, cream, imperial strength and tequilla influences. that poor little cream ale never saw it coming. Carton Brewing pushes the envelope of the often subtle style with a sour-of-the-boarder mindset piled high on their Regular Coffee series.

Mexican Coffee pours a deep honey and mild chocolate color. Rusty and goldenrod in its depths, the initial frothy crown gives way to a sweet, spicy and fruity nose before splashing the front of the tongue with strong honey, caramel, toffee and agave sweetness.

The beer only intensifies as the middle palate becomes awash with a rich cereal, marmalade and light chocolate taste. The spice of alcohol comes with a smack of whisky, vodka and tequila in a cocktail of peppery heat with the impact of straight ether. Nutty, toasty and woodsy, the beer's late palate seems to exacerbate the prickling heat in attempt to dry the sweetness and offer any semblance of drinkability.

Full, cloying and like thick corn syrups, the cream ale's strong sweetness and equally as abrupt alcohol pull the tastebuds in two entirely different directions creating a polarizing taste that just doesn't get along. Instead of balancing each other, they oppose each other and the battle plays out over the palate and into a long, hot and fusel-sweet aftertaste.

Great strong cream ale in the series in which St Kitts, Yirgacheffe and French may be my faves.
A) Clear deep shellac golden body, white head and a bit of lace, lower carbonation.
S) Big but taste is bigger of upfront coffee, tequila, kahlua, smoke, and wood. No hops.
T) BIgger, rendition of the aroma, savoring the subtle liqueur So drink it slow at cask temp.
F) Unlike others I feel the ABV but it’s the sugar,
O) Must try the entire series. But lemony St Kitts and Russian yergechef get my top votes.

**
04/21/19

Can (thanks to DC) to snifter.

LOOK: Lightly Hazy (more just cloudy) brown color, with a hint of orange. Healthy off white head. Good Retention.
AROMA: Apple, Cinnamon, some tequila. Don't really get the coffee, but the tequila barrel really pushes this around even though it creates more of other flavors than actual tequila.
TASTE: Tequila, lime, apple, brandy, wine. The tequila shows up here even more, still missing the coffee, but this is certainly tasty. A sweetness lingers.
FEEL: lively, medium body.

OA: Interesting extension of the Carton Regular Coffee series. St. Kitts is still by far my favorite.

**

Pours a lightly foggy copper with a finger of off-white foam. Head retention is okay. Aroma is sharp tequila right on the nose, with a little medium-bodied coffee to chase and sooth it out. Tequila brings about a little heat, which is more of a prick of heat than a roasty flame. Caramel, bready, nutty, toasty malts sooth it out a touch, but the tequila is the shiny star. Flavor profile is much more smooth, opening up with soft, medium-bodied coffee with a mild fleshiness, followed by smooth tequila. Heat is retained well. Caramel, bready, toasty, nutty malts add smoothness and further the balance. Mouth feel is soft, and nearing smooth. It has a medium thickness. Overall, tequila is well contained in the flavor profile, but a little stronger in the aroma. It pairs well with the coffee for a well balanced drink.

Served in a 15.5oz Spiegalau tulip from a 12oz can.

 

 

 

Reviewed one week after release. Poured into a Carton dimpled mug. It pours a cloudy, orange-brown color that resembles apple cider with a thin, milk-white cap and minimal lacing. The subdued nose features freshly-brewed coffee, cream, and a funky fruity smell of tequila. The taste opens like Regular Coffee but there is a sudden burst of fruity, liquory taste from the tequila. It really compliments the coffee taste. It seems a bit thicker and richer than the other variants with a pleasant level of carbonation. I've always thought that 12% is a bit high for all the Coffee series and given the tequila taste it seems even higher. All that said, this variant is really tasty and I enjoyed it even though I'm not a big fan of tequila