Coco(A) Stout
Crux Fermentation Project

 

 

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours nearly black, appearing opaque black in the glass with a fine, two finger light brown head with great retention and thick lacing. Aroma of dark toasted malt with light char and cocoa, attenuated by the thick head. Flavor is dark toasted malt with light char, milk chocolate, light coconut and vanilla. Finishes with lingering toastede coconut and chocolate. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. A nice choclolate stout with mild malt char, light touches of vanilla and coconut and fairly mellow chocolate notes. Although the cocoa is not as intense as expected from the name, everything is in good balance and leaves a pleasant vanilla, coconut and cocoa aftertaste. I'll get this one again.

500 ml bottle purchased from Trader Joe in Salem.
$5.49
Black bodied beer witu a good sized frothy lighter tan head.
Aromas of chocolate ( milky) cocoa powder and some nuttiness.
Taste pretty much the same as the aroma but more milky chocolate and a bit of black berry..and toffee.
Nice smooth mouth feel. Not thick but OK.
Nice simple stout..very drinkable

 

 

16oz bottle poured into 14oz teku. Poured a solid black color, with almost 2 inches of thick, luscious, creamy, long-lasting, light brown head that had great retention and average lacing.

Lots of cocoa upfront in the nose, with just enough roast in the background to act as a counterpoint. The cocoa wasn't as strong on the tongue, but the base malts came out a bit more, and the roast stayed at just the right level.

The body was a bit on the thinner side than I would liked for an 8% ABV brew, but was smooth and even, and coated the tongue nicely. Drinkability was great, I see a few more of these in my future. Overall, another fine job by the folks from Bend. a must-try if you see it.

Portland, OR. July 2018

 

 

$ 10.77 (Including shipping)/500 mL capped bottle ($ 0.631/oz) from Tavour, Seattle, WA.
Bottled on 01.04.2018 lightly stamped on label, stored at 42 degrees and served at 48 degrees in a hand-washed and hand-dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.5.
Body – Dark brown/black, opaque. When held to the light, no penetration except at the meniscus.
Head – Head large (Maximum 6.3 cm, aggressive center pour), low density, dark tan, average retention time, diminishing to a three mm ring and a thin rocky layer. Second pour produces a much smaller head and produces effervescence which feeds the ring.
Lacing – Poor. Some dragging of the ring as the level drops, forming a single butte, but no formation of rings of lacing. The butte eventually opens into a mask-like structure.
First pour – Dark brown, clear.
Aroma – 4 – Cocoa, some roasted malt. The cocoa weakens over time, allowing a hint of roasted coconut to come through.
Flavor – 3.75 - Initially cocoa-flavored and roasty, with the malt flavor mostly overshadowed by the roastiness. It ends very slightly bitter with a taste of roasted coconut. I’m not detecting any of the advertised vanilla, but that seems to be a tasting blind spot for me. No hops, no alcohol, no diacetyl, no dimethylsulfide.
Palate – 3 - Medium, almost creamy, soft carbonation.
Impression and summation – 3.5 - The appearance is good overall, but the poor lacing is somewhat of a let-down. The aroma is good but not compelling. The flavor seems unbalanced, with the cocoa overlying everything else, but it is supposed to be a chocolate stout. The palate just misses being creamy by feeling a bit dry, like undissolved cocoa powder. Overall, a decent but not exceptional chocolate American stout.

Quite dark brown and handsomely foam in the Caution nonic. Pleasantly frothy mouthfeel with the silky feel of an Oatmeal Stout. Seriously roasted malt, burnt sugar, and lots of dark caramel. Bitter chocolate finish. Fairly bitter aftertaste, like old espresso.

Very rich, very coconutty. Quite sweet, and yes, I would call it dessert. Still, it's clean and an interesting variation on all the flavored Stouts. From the 500 ml bottle purchased at Elizabeth Station in Wash.

 

Chocolate brown appearance with light tan head thatndisipayes quickly. Aroma is a milk chocolate. Taste is also a milk chocolate that has a little aftertaste that takes away from the experience.