Pharaoh Ascendant - Chocolate Cake Edition - Cocoa & Pecans
Modern Times Beer

Best head production and retention I've seen so far among the variants, but it's still modest at best.

Strong cola and prune notes from the nose, along with chocolate. Lesser notes of cream, molasses, and brown sugar. Slightly metallic tinge.

Appropriately creamy and thick on the palate; consistent with the others in the series, perhaps even a touch thicker. Definitely a dessert beer / pastry stout you can sip and savor.

Whatever contributed to the metallic tinge on the nose is almost nowhere to be found on the palate. Drinks smooth and sweet. The pecans don't significantly contribute to the flavor profile; it's a bit nutty, but the base malts express that way, as well. Chocolate is definitely dominant, along with brown sugar, cream, and molasses.

An excellent dessert stout. Would make an outstanding candidate for bourbon barrel aging.

 

This one pours a dark black color, with a small head, and a little bit of lacing.

This smells like sweet candied pecans, chocolate fudge, milk chocolate, vanilla, and roast.

This is very well balanced between sweet elements and roasty bitter elements. The pecan leads the way, adding some sweetness but also a balancing nuttiness that melds well with the roasty character. There's some vanilla-like flavors, and a nice fudgy and milk chocolate finish that feels super creamy.

This is thick, but not syrupy, with no real booziness to it. It drinks very well.

I've had very little of the new Modern Times pastry game, but what I've had, I've liked a lot.