Birthday Bomb!
Prairie Artisan Ales

2016 bottle consumed Mar 2023. Thick black with minimal carbonation, minimal beige head with low retention. Nose a bit muted, mineral. Taste definitely getting chocolate, some spice hidden in there. Finish comes through the same as drinking black coffee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12 oz bottle poured into a Duvel tulip. Picked up from the liquor store for about $8. No discernable date, but 12181 printed on base of neck.

Appearance - Pours relatively small 1 finger or less brown head with low retention and decent stick and lacing. Absolutely pitch black body that even backlit by a phone flashlight doesn't even produce even the slightest bit of transparency even around the edges. Sort of intimidating. Points for the impressive body, minus points for the unimpressive head. 4

Smell - Can't tell exactly what I'm smelling but it's like an undecipherable combination of soy sauce, coffee, and alcohol. The components don't really seem to stand apart from eachother, they just blend together. A slight swirl generates something that might be vanilla. Has a strong solvent smell. Maybe the high alcohol content, seeing as it's 13% ABV. Seems to be mellowing out and softening as it warms and breathes a bit. 4

Taste - Strong black coffee. Tobacco. Earthy. Slightly rounded out by the cocao and vanilla, but then resharpened by some red pepper spice warmth. Not really my cup of tea but I can appreciate it for what it is. 4

Mouthfeel - Bold, astringent, and a bit on the sharp side, with the extra high alcohol and chili peppers. This isn't easy drinking. It will wake up your mouth and mind. 4

Overall - Pretty good across the board, but it's just a little too lopsided and unbalanced. Though if you're looking for something with that sort of kick, then this will do the trick. I know giving 4's across the board can seem like lazy rating, but I genuinely have to give each aspect that grade. 4

2019 vintage pours pitch black into a mug; lead aromas of peppery coffee and subtle sweetness; the palate is exceptionally full of vanilla, caramel, coffee/espresso, chocolate/cocoa nibs, toffee, with the smallest hint of spice (very complementary). Very smooth full body with invisible alcohol at over one year old in the bottle; well-rounded and delicious. Overall every adjunct is well-integrated and this isn’t cloying at all. Loved this one, as I do most Prairie stouts.

 

 

Another March Madness 2017 beer. Its a Prarie shelfie, pretty sure it was an elrogish contribution.

Pours black. Thin brown head 1/4". Comes with the usual bomb roasted malt and coffee notes in the nose, plenty forceful once again.

Taste is another bomb, but this time with some peppers to it. They seem to be in the right proportion, as they provide heat and warmth, but they don't detract from the rest of the beer, it is plenty harmonized. Vanilla and cocoa provide quite the smoothing effect without bogging down into some sugary pastry beer. Like most of their beers, this one hides the alcohol really well. The beer drinks exactly like its commercial tug job proclaims, and its all the better for it.

When I think of non barrel aged stouts, this is one of the best, and in the most convenient format to boot. Not really sure what the caramel sauce is all about, that was the one area that didn't pan out for me, but I'm kind of glad it didn't really show up.

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from a bottle -dark as night with short khaki head leaving a ring of bubbles and not much else. Nose is muted roasty malt , some sweetness and a whiff of chili spice. Taste ups the ante with more of that and then some. Very smooth finish with a bit of mild chili afterburn. Delicious.

 

 

 

Tasted a lot like KBS from Founders so if you’ve ever had that one you kind of know what this one tastes like. Drank this beer on my birthday :).

Pours jet black without much head.

Smell is chocolate, vanilla, and coffee.

Taste is coffee, chocolate, vanilla, with a hint of chili on the back end. The caramel and toffee is not strong. Tastes very similar to the regular Prairie Bomb but the chili is more restrained. Really really tasty regardless.

Mouthfeel is thick on oily.

Overall as good as the Prairie Bomb. Hard to find a stout better than this.

 

On draft at the Nook in Huntsville. Massive pour for a 13% beer, so I guess I'll have plenty of opportunity to savor this one. Dead opaque and just about black with just a sliver of a head. Nose is a rather "creamy" blend of toasty roasted notes, cocoa, and cooked marshmallow. Taste is even creamier than the nose indicated. A little on the sweet side, but not as cloying as these giant beers tend to get. Maybe lacking a big coffee flavor I was expecting, but plenty of pillowy toasted marshmallow, caramel (candy not malt), and rounded roasted flavors. Feels closer to 10% than 13%, and not even hot for that. Only complaint is I'd like to see some of the flavors pop as opposed to being so intermingled and soft. Excellent beer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pours pitch black with a thin caramel colored head that fades quickly in the middle but sticks around for a while around the glass. Not much lacing to speak of.

Smells like chocolate and vanilla with a little bit of coffee. The spices and coffee really show up in the taste, but also present are chocolate, vanilla, and caramel.

Feel - incredibly smooth. It’s definitely a beer to sip and not to take large gulps, but it drinks smoothly nonetheless. It’s not as “boozy” as I would have expected from a 13% beer. Aftertaste is slightly present, but the finish really is quite clean and dry.

Overall - Great stout. To me, this seems like a stout that I would give to someone who doesn’t like stouts and perhaps it would change their mind. Flavor is bold, but not overpowering in any way. Solid offering from yet another Oklahoma brewery.