Hazelnut Brownie
Tree House Brewing Company

 

Drank from a 12 oz. white wax dipped bottle purchased at Tree House Brewing Company, Charlton, MA
Served in a tulip

The beer poured an insanely dense and oily looking, complete pitch black. There was no true head, but some saddle brown swirls of froth sat atop the liquid. After a few minutes, the swirls transformed into a thin, resilient collar.

The aroma was outstanding. Uber rich, malty and robust. Super boozy too. Roasted malts came through strong, but they were well balanced by nice amount caramel malt sweetness. Dark chocolate notes were also apparent. A bit of dark roast coffee was detectable as well. Punchy bourbon notes were prominent from the get go but never came across as harsh or excessive. Some sweet vanilla and brown sugar was noticeable too. Unfortunately, I did not pick up any hazelnut.

The flavor profile was nearly as impressive as the nose. Again, super rich, malty and boozy. Huge roasted malt presence. Nice caramel and brown sugar sweetness to balance this out. Some dark chocolate was noticeable as well. The coffee was very subtle here however. Boozy bourbon notes came through strong from the start and never let up. Nice vanilla and sweet cream notes in the center. More roastiness and boozy bourbon notes on the back end and the finish. Like in the nose, the hazelnut was nonexistent.

Excellent rich, oily, dense mouthfeel. Full bodied for the style. The liquid contained a super fine and subtle effervescence that worked perfectly for a beer of this style.

Despite the hazelnut being completely undetectable in this beer, it was still an amazingly rich, complex and bourbon barrel-forward imperial stout that I would gladly seek out again.