Oatmeal Stout
Blue Stallion Brewing Co.

I've ordered this on draft multiple times from local establishments. There's always something a bit weird in there, especially in the finish, that I don't find pleasant. Strange because I really like their Dunkel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The common employment of oats to the dark grist has been the preferred balance to the acrid roast of drier stout for the British. And Blue Stallion brings the authentic black beer to life with strong coffee flavor, a creamy slickness and subtle fruit undertones.

Evoking a masculine sense, the eye and tongue are drawn in with creamy charred flavors. Roasted grains, and caramel malt sweetness saturate the nose and flavor with impressions of bittersweet chocolate, heavy toast and french-press coffee.

As the middle blooms, its starchy malt taste and texture gives the body and milkshake taste and feel. Its cocoa-heavy taste carries a firm bitterness that weaves into the coffee taste that's just shy of espresso. Light complexities slither through the malt dominance with an undertow of grape and vanilla.

Its finish is a would-be sharpness with the gripping bite of roasted barley, but the oats come to life and seem to round out those rougher edges as they merge with the beer's sweetness for a smooth and silky taste and texture. Slight on carbonation, the beer's body weigh densely on the tongue for full saturation of the taste buds; which gives the black ale a semi-still creaminess with a return of chocolate and grape in aftertaste.

 

 

 

 

 

The body holds a deep black appearance but the edges give it away as the dark brown comes through. The head was layered in bubbles but coalesced to a thick core that quickly went away.

The aroma is spot on the style with obvious oat tones, significant char and smoke with campy embers and hints of chocolate malt. Nicely tucked deep in the nose is a molasses and maple scent.

The flavor goes more to a burnt toast with a smoky yet roasted char. The charred malt is definitely oatey, with a touch of dry chocolate malt. This tastes much like expectation in the style but the char is more pronounced which is much to my personal liking. The molasses I found in the nose was absent but the maple held true towards the finish.

The feel is unfortunately inappropriate for the style, in my opinion, as it holds a weak thinness towards down right watery. The carbonation is relatively low but it just does not hold the thickness and viscosity I want in a stout.

Overall, this is phenomenal, especially for a test batch or experimental. The flavor is always most important and Blue Stallion has nailed it.