Watchtower Chili Cocoa Stout
Edge Brewing Company

 

a little lower listed alcohol than is shown here, 7.9% abv when i was in. this was quite good, not usually a style i want to drink too much of, but the proportions in this are great, and i was impressed overall with the quality of this and the others i had when i was in recently, seems like the beer overall has gotten a lot better over the last year or so. matte black in the globe with a note of smoked pepper like an ancho or something, dry cocoa powder with the baking chocolate bitterness to it, quite a bit of roasted dark barley that gives a coffee hint to this, and even black pepper to me, not as warming and wintery as i thought in the absence of sweeter grain or milk chocolate, and i dont really get cinnamon or any of the cozy spices that often work themselves into these recipes, if its there at all, its awfully minimal. i like the pepper being the lead dog in the flavor, dried and ground it seems, maybe smoked, not overdosed, and all the heat is in the throat on the swallow, almost gone by the next sip too, so its not overpowering. enough bitter from the dark roast and the dry cocoa to stand out too, and there is balance in this even without anything sweet, no vanilla, or any other apparent spices. the full body here is a must, and they got that dialed, and i like the drier finish, so many of these are desserty, but not here. still a little bigger than i can drink much of, but i was impressed with this overall, wintery and flavorful, bitter chocolate and the earthy chili, cool recipe as much for whats not in it as for what is, nice!

12oz can poured into a pint glass.

Fairly typical stout appearance, dark drown with light showing through the edges; hard pour produced a hefty small-bubbled khaki head.

Lots of spices and cocoa/cacao beans on the nose, the spice isn't overpowering though and everything meshes well. Smoked pepper skin, cinnamon, roasted malt...all good!

Very drinkable palate, the spice and smokiness is an underlying layer and propels the chocolate/sweetness forward...notes of woodiness and even vanilla and berries. Tasty!

Medium bodied, lower carbonation, smooth.

Overall a very enjoyable Mexican stout with nice adjunct additions and great balance.