Swindler's Spice
Alosta Brewing Co.

an interesting beer, made like a horchata or something, spiced like chai, with notes of chili and cinnamon and maybe vanilla, its definitely sweet, but its very good, not something i usually dig, but it makes sense here, in this very flavorful but quite low alcohol porter, i am sure the base beer is fantastic in its own right, and i hope to try it one day. this is cinnamon heavy, with a little bit of dark chocolate bitterness and some enjoyable warmth going down. brown sugar, cocoa, molasses, heavy roast, coffee grounds, possibly cardamom or something pungent and herbal, and some bitterness are all there too in the flavor, its pretty complex, but it all works rather well together. the sweetness could be dialed back just a bit, but the beer drinks lightly even still. definite chai tea notes here, my girlfriend would love this, smooth in body too for being so light and so involved. i have only had a few beers from these guys, but they have bee really creative and pretty well done overall. fun stuff up and down their beer menu it looks like!

On tap at the LA Beer Week Kickoff Festival held at Exposition Park in Los Angeles, CA.

Pours an opaque black with a foamy khaki head that settles to a partial film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt, coffee bean, vanilla, and chai spice aromas. Taste is much the same with cocoa powder, vanilla, and chai spice flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of roast and spice bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a very good beer with a fantastic use of chai spices that work super well with the base beer.

Serving type: on tap.