Hunter Cinnamon Vanilla
18th Street Brewery - Gary Taproom

 

Big ol' thanks goes out to Matt for this.

This Hunter pours like sludge. Used motor oil black. Complete darkness yet a perfect reflection bounces off its emptiness. The darkest Russian Imperial Stout like brown head foams up quickly then submits to the abyss.

Burnt toast, milk chocolate, and cinnamon roll off the surface. Coffee and black strap molasses follow and do an impressive job to subdue a mild medicinal presence.

Chocolate, French roast coffee, and burnt toast put up a bold dominance, but an unexpected tingly tartness comes into play. Kind of hard to pinpoint actually. Almost like maraschino cherries are coated in a thin layer of milk chocolate then lightly dusted with cinnamon, salt, and brown sugar.

The feel is as I was expecting. It looked like motor oil coming out of the can,and it is exactly that. A rich, sludgy, thick, and creamy texture coats everything it touches, and it stays. It's actually quite balanced, and has a low carbonation despite that earlier mentioned tingle.

This is a big beer. Delicious, but a real sipper. I look forward to savoring each sip with plenty of time between.

Thanks again Matt! Cheers.

 

 

 

 

Canned early December 2017; drank 1/1/18 @ the Yarchives.

Motor oil black appearance.

A violent pour yielded a big dark tan head; a thick curtain of lace.

Burnt caramel, mild allspice, faint vanilla & faint citrus notes in the nose.

Medium thick, creamy mouthfeel.

Burnt caramel, dark chocolate & faint cinnamon flavors up front; mild vanilla notes on the finish. No booze heat.

Thankfully light on cinnamon & strong of roasty flavors; this was a rich, tasty winner for me.

Appearance - The beer was deep black in color with a mocha colored head.

Smell - The general Hunter profile was present with cinnamon undertones

Taste - The overall profile was the familiar smooth milky malts of Hunter. Cinnamon was well balanced, and dod not takeover. The vanilla was largely absent. The smootg dark chocolates were back in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Hunter is so smooth, even loaded with cinnamon.

Overall - In terms of canon versus non-canon Hunter variants in the vertical, this beats Vanilla Hazelnut.