The Prioress
Southern Pines Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

Black viscous pour with 2 finger head that briefly lingered leaving almost no lacing. Roasted coffee and malts, chocolate on the nose. Coffee and chocolate taste comes through. Has a creamy sweetness to it and tastes quite good.

 

Look: It pours black with a brown head. It has moderate head retention.

Smell: It has aromas of chocolate, roast, and coffee.

Taste: It has roasted flavors with chocolate, and coffee.

Feel: It has a moderate body that is smooth in texture. The bitterness is moderately low.

Overall it is definitely dominated by the malts with a smooth and silky texture.

A: Pours an opaque yet still clear thick viscous jet black in color with moderate amounts of fine active visible carbonation along the edges of the glass and very faint dark cola brown highlights. The beer has a two finger tall dense foamy dark tan head that quickly reduces to a large patch of thin film covering about 95% of the surface of the beer and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Light to moderate amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate to strong aromas of roasted malts with moderate aromas of lactose sweetness and milk chocolate. Light to moderate aromas of roasted coffee and a hint of charred malts.

T: Upfront there is a moderate to slightly stronger than moderate flavor of roasted + caramel malts with a light hint of charred malts and a moderate amount of lactose + caramel sweetness. That is followed by moderate flavors of milk chocolate and freshly brewed coffee with a light flavor of earthy hops. Moderate amounts of roasty bitterness which lingers for a short amount of time.

M: Medium to full bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation. Smooth.

O: Very easy to drink and enjoyable but not overly sweet. Pretty well balanced between the sweetness of the caramel + lactose and the roastiness of the malts.

The Prioress pours to a brief-lived, slightly pebbly thin tan head on an impenetrably black body that shows slight amber highlights just at its base; lacing is scant, consisting of fast-retreating dots and swoops. The nose is medium in intensity: cocoa backed by more subtle coffee notes, significant alcohol overtones and a hint of smoke. The flavor is also medium, manifesting as a seamless, slightly tartish blend of chocolate and bitter coffee with hints of molasses and smoke. The finish is fairly clean, being a modest hit of toffee, and a bit dry at the break; the linger is a faint smoky chocolate flavor that quickly fades. While not very complex, the aroma and flavor are both solidly focused on the fundamentals of the style, and the flavor is extremely well-balanced in terms of sweet and bitter. Mouthfeel is a bit thin for the medium-full body, and the texture is medium-creamy and medium-peppery from the lively carbonation. The balanced flavor, the light, lively mouthfeel and the fast, clean finish make this a very drinkable stout. This would be a great beer for Irish Car Bombs, and I mean that in the best way possible. (growler)