Snow Day Stout
Berkshire Brewing Company

 

 

Pours a very dark brown, nearly black. Fleeting cap of beige foam falling to a scant ring and a few strands of fine bubbles.

Smells strongly of peanut butter backed by the white chocolate. Fairly strong coffee smell and roasted malts. Quite charred leaning into being smokey. A bit of vanilla suggesting at least a bit of sweetness.

The taste...hmmm...pretty much a straight AIS initially. Coffee, charred malts, coffee, fand aint smokiness lead the way but then the peanut butter and white chocolate come out in the aftertaste. The char, while assertive, is nowhere near unpleasant - definitely not in the licked an ashtray territory. Totally reverse of the expectation set by the aroma. In the flavor, this is an AIS augmented by a kiss of peanut butter and white chocolate rather than a mess of a beer dominated by the additions. There's a little sweetness that attempts to calm the char and coffee but it kinda fails. Not in a bad way.

The feel seems thin to me for the style and it's a little more than modestly carbonated which I think makes it feel thinner. The peanut butter hangs well after the swallow - kinda wish it would go away but a fresh sip squelches it until next sip. Slightly astringent but not overly dry.

Overall it's decent - presents primarily as an AIS accented by peanut butter and white chocolate. True to style with supporting rather than dominating flavor additions. Mouthfeel ticks it down for me.

Poured from a can into a snifter
Appearance – The beer pours a deep brown, nearly black color with a smell head of tan colored foam. The head fades quite quickly, leaving just a trace of lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma is massive of a dark chocolate and white chocolate smell mixed with a huge showing of sweet vanilla and brown sugar. Other big aromas of roasted peanuts and peanut butter, along with aromas of coffee and crème. A little bit of a char and smoke smell are there as well, along with a caramel and marshmallow like smell. Overall, sweet, dark, and inviting.
Taste – The taste begins with less sweet than I was anticipating from the nose, but on point for what I was expecting in the roastiness department. It starts with a dark roasted malt and coffee flavor mixed with some notes of dark chocolate and vanilla. There is a bit of a white chocolate and brown sugar flavor upfront, adding a light backdrop. As the taste advances the sweet starts to get stronger, with more white chocolate and some caramel and plum. Only a light peanut flavor comes to the flavor profile, being far lighter in intensity then one may have expected from the nose. A bit of milkiness/creme comes along and adds to the sweet. At the same time there is smore bitter coffee that balances out the sweet, and with a bit of cola and wood at the very end, one is left with a dark, semisweet taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is quite thick and heavy with a carbonation level that is on the lower side. For the dark and rich flavors of the brew the feel is quite nice and makes for a nice slow and warming dessert sipper.
Overall – A rather nice, none cloying stout. The adjunct flavors they are going for, certainly do not overwhelm, instead they just add some nice accents to the base stout flavor profile.