3
Four Sons Brewing

No date on this bugger, but I remember picking it up in Nashville in February. I hope it's still okay. It's been in my cellar until just recently, so we'll see how it goes.

North Coast Tulip.

Deep thick syrupy black with a creamy brown head of 1 finger that leaves tons of lace as it recedes to half its size.

Maple syrup hits the nose immediately. It's kinda floral, but I suppose the sugars get eaten up by the greedy yeast so you don't get that natural maple aroma as much (unless you're adding maple powder). Following notes of chocolate, roasted coffee, and uh oh - bacterial infection. Let's hope it didn't grab hold too badly.

Yep, it did. It's not undrinkable, but I get a metallic acidic funk underneath this wave of maple, coffee, vanilla, and chocolate. I can almost taste bacon. I can tell this was a pretty solid stout before it went south. Maple and coffee can be tricky buggers to stick in a beer. Roasted character throughout. I'll still give it a fair score.

Feel is a little thinned out with some heavy carbonation and roasted feel throughout. Surprisingly light on the heat for such a heavy beer.

Overall, a bummer that it got infected, but I'd try it again if I saw it. Unfortunately there's no can date so it's impossible to tell how old it is (or will be if I encounter it in the future).

$3.99 @ Red Spirits & Wine, Nashville