C.O.B.
Free Will Brewing Co.

 

16oz can purchased from the fridge as a single for $4.99. No canned-on date.

Look: Pours a very nice reddish copper color with tiny particulates floating in suspension and the beer still has a good amount of overall clarity. There was a nice two-fingers of tan head that slowly dissipated to a thin layer.

Smell: It smells very malty up front, it's almost doppelbock-esque. Brown sugar and molasses on the nose along with some vanilla, coffee, and amaretto. Subtle spice notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. It smells very good.

Taste: This is a very tasty beer. Up front, it's a bit sweet with notes of caramel, toffee, raisins, and a bit of chocolate. However, the finish has a nice roasted malt character along with a mild bitterness that combine for a subtle dryness on the palate. There's a nice lingering amaretto flavor on the palate, which is very interesting. This beer is very easy to drink. I think that it is a good think that the coffee is not playing a starring role here. This is a "brown ale with coffee" even though the name is Coffee Oatmeal Brown.

Feel: Medium to medium plus body with a subtle creaminess. Nicely carbonated. Very clean.

Overall: I had this beer several years ago and I don't know why it took me so long to get it again. I actually have not seen it at the beer stores that I shop very frequently; usually it's the Free Will IPA's that are on sale in the fridge (big surprise). In my opinion, this is one of the best year-round beers that Free Will makes. It's a shame that it is not more readily available.

From the can:
Roast by Speakeasy Coffee Company [Pennsburg, PA]

Looks more like a red ale, but the head retention is phenomenal and so is the lace. Nose is almost all coffee. There's some sweetness underneath. Molasses. Taste, too, is a little too coffee-forward, but not quite as overwhelming as I'd have guessed based on the nose. Sweetness balances things out reasonably well, but aging beer on coffee beans seems like a better idea on paper. My own French press experiments with coffee bean infusion almost always go sideways in a hurry. Also drinks a little thin for such a big beer. Maybe it's the light carbonation. Regardless, not my favorite; I was hoping for a Sumatra Mountain replacement (when's the last time Founders made that?) but this ain't it.

A thanks to the creator of the canquest, woodychandler, for this beer. Poured from a 16 oz. can. Has a hazy brown color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is bursting with coffee. Taste is coffee, chocolate. some brown sugar. Feels medium/full bodied in the mouth and overall is a solid beer.

 

Poured from a 16 oz can into pint glass in April 2021. There was no bottled on or drink by date on the can, but I drank this about 1 week after purchasing it.

Appearance: Deep Amber with slightly hazy tint and a light tan head. The head was less than 1 finger when poured, and was gone quickly, There was very little lacing on the glass.

Smell: Strong coffee aroma with some caramel aroma as well. Some spiciness and malty aromas, but with very little hop aroma. Overall the coffee aroma dominates.

Taste: Interesting taste, dominated mostly by the coffee flavors. Some sweetness like licorice or caramel taste, with some other sweet flavors like chocolate. There is very little hops flavor. This is sweet and typical of brown beers.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and strong alcohol which matches the 8.3% listed on the label.

This is an interesting and different brown ale. It is dominated by the coffee flavor, but it also has typical sweetness like other brown ales. The coffee flavor hints of a coffee stout, but this is more sweet and does not have the same body as a stout. I would buy this again.

 

 

16 ounce can poured into a Duvel tulip glass.

L---Medium/light brown color with a thin tan head that faded quickly and didn't leave much lacing.

S---Strong coffee. Mild graham cracker & brown sugar.

T---Wifey pegged this one without even knowing what it was. She said strong coffee, some bitter chocolate and mild oatmeal. I'll agree with her, but I actually knew what I was drinking.

F---Medium bodied with light carbonation. One for a winter night.

O---A quality effort by a quality brewery. I'd get this one again and I'm interested in the variants.

Pours brown with a little head. Aroma is mild coffee, and dirty socks. Flavor is cold brew coffee, and feet. Good body and feel. Overall taste like coffee brewed through sweaty gym socks.

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a medium to dark reddish brown with a thin off-white head that dissipates to patches with light lacing. Aroma of lightly toasted and biscuit malt, graham cracker, coffee and a hint of caramel. Flavor is toasted and caramel malt, coffee, lactose, graham crackers and brown bread. Medium bodied with light creaminess. I am not usually enthusiastic about lighter beers with coffee (although I really like coffee stouts and porters), so I approached this with light trepidation. No need, this is very tasty. A bit on the sweet side, but not cloying and the semi-sweet malt, crackery and bready flavors really support the coffee well. Nicely balanced with clear coffee notes, but in harmony with the malt. Not as heavy as a lot of oat beers, but with a pleasant mouth feel. I really liked this and would get it again if it was available locally. Nicely done.

 

 

 

16 oz can, dated 11/8/17, poured into a pint glass

A- A lighter clear brown with a two finger off white head.

S- Coffee, nutty, some toffee, caramel, some graham crackers.

T- Coffee, caramel/toffee, hints of graham crackers, slightly earthy.

M- Smooth, medium body.

O- A tasty brown ale with coffee. Held up pretty good for almost a year old.

Very light color for a brown ale. Unmistakable brown ale aroma and flavor however. Very creamy and satisfying feel.

 

Reddish brown with a clean head

Smells like fresh coffee with caramel malts

Taste is malty with a big coffee punch. Tasty beer.

Mouthfeel- medium carbonation, medium body

One of the betree uses of coffee in a non-stout beer. Grab it if you see it.