Barrel Aged Caribbean Chocolate Cake
Siren Craft Brew

2020 vintage; I had this on draft 6/7/23 @ the Hopleaf.

Black appearance.

Nice dark tan head; strong, frothy lace remained.

Oak, blackberry, bourbon, grape must & bakers chocolate notes in the nose. That's...a lot!

Creamy medium thick mouthfeel.

Grape jelly, oak & bakers chocolate flavors up front; dry booze heat notes on the finish.

Interesting, for sure, but a bit much. Worth a try, though...

 

 

 

Pours coal black with a huge, mohagony head.

Smells of bakers chocolate, smoked oak and spicy licorice. There is additional nuances of espresso coffee beans, muscovado sugar, a hint of vanilla and sweet caramel in this, rounding out the nose gently.

Has a lighter, unexpectedly thin mouthfeel with a well nuanced, subtle level of carbonation.

Tastes of bitter chocolate, lighter campfire smoke and slightly sour, earthen coffee among balancing bakers chocolate. Has a sweet middle part with a lingering sourness, featuring toffee and caramel, together with a note of sweeter milk chocolate. Finishes chocolate forward with cinnamon and sugar glazed cherries among a subtle dryness, inheriting a touch of oak.

This got quite a thin mouthfeel for what it is with a strange, ongoing sourness to it, while there is not much barrel character to speak of at all in the beer.

 

 

 

Canned and discovered in a messenger bag I’ve not worn for a while so not sure when It picked this up
Very smooth, creamy , slight Irish whiskey notes

Jan 12 2020 Review

11.? oz bottle poured into a chalice.

Pour: deep, dark brown with a one finger dark tan head. Leaves a thin ring with some bubble lacing.

Nose: lactose is pretty strong, hints of chocolate and cinnamon. Bourbon as well but pretty mild.

Taste: similar to nose with sweet lactose, rich malt, chocolate, hints of cinnamon and coffee.

Mouthfeel: low carbonation, a little thin but not watery. Easy to drink.

Overall: enjoyable with plenty going on. Lactose tends to overwhelm the other flavors a bit. Wouldn’t turn it down but probably won’t pursue.

 

 

Pours very dark brown and is almost black with ruby highlights. One quarter inch, golden brown-to-auburn mahogany head is fine and quickly diminishes. Some fine lace is left on a PBGC tulip glass.

Bourbon is strong and boozy. Beyond that, there is rich, dark chocolate with some sweet espresso and roasted malt in the background. Warmth brings out oak and cinnamon notes.

Flavor follows the aroma, though the bittersweet chocolate and espresso switch places with the bourbon. Sweetness overtakes the bitterness, then yields in the long finish. There is a nice sweet sourness that lightly initiates and lingers in the finish.

A full body with soft smooth texture. Alcohol is as expected and slightly warming. Fine carbonation helps to cleanse a considerable amount of residual sugar.

This beer was enjoyable on a quiet, sunny afternoon.

 

Really dark brown color with mocha head. Aroma has some savory umami notes, chocolate with rum filling, fudge and fresh cut wood chips. Taste follows with wood notes, chocolate, whiskey, fudge, toffee and a light bitterness on the finish. Medium plus body with soft carbonation. Really well balanced stout with intense wood character.

Pitch black with a little mocha head
There is a lot of cocoa, vanilla and woody character.
Big body with the dextrine addition
Moderate to low carbonation

 

Very small head production, and retention to match. Not particularly poor for the style, but not impressive. Brew is a nice, dark, coffee-like, nutty ebony.

Bourbon is fairly strong on the nose, accompanied by burnt caramel, red grapes, and chocolate. The cypress wood still comes through, as well, albeit indistinguishable from the oak barrels, just an overall spicy woodiness. Fairly sharp booziness, not unlike wine, and a little strong for a brew in the single-digits ABV.

Flavor follows, but is much better presented. Plenty of char and woodiness, burnt caramel, and minor smoke and char accompany smooth bourbon mash up front, chocolate, red grapes, and brown sugar. Milder tones of cream on the finish. Minor booziness, not as strong as the nose, but still a touch stronger than typical for an 8.5% brew.

Sticky on the palate; lively. A touch boozy, but not too bad.

This is a very solid overall brew. There are things it could do better, but overall it's very enjoyable, and very, very good, just shy of great.

This one pours a fairly dark black color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like vanilla, cocoa nibs, oak spice, fudge, and cinnamon.

There's some nice barrel character here, with oak and cypress wood spice, and a bit of warm caramelly bourbon character. There's also some nice earthy vanilla too, and lots of milk chocolate syrup.

This is medium bodied, a touch light, with a very good level of drinkability, and a soft level of carbonation.

This was a fun little beer to try, but I want it to be a bit thicker and bolder.