Birthday Bänger
Põhjala Brewery & Tap Room

RB Transfer

This one hits weird. It’s like Babe Ruth with a cold - at first there is a bit of thunder (barrel age), but then it peters out into a weird sweetness. It’s like Wimpy without a hamburger - something isn’t right.

It’s settled in a bit over time…

 

Poured at fridge temp. Pours motor oil black with light brown head. The nose is black licorice, tonka beans, vanilla, dark chocolate, roasted malts, tobacco, coffee. The taste is a mix of sweet and bitter. I get lots of tonka beans, coffee, vanilla, chocolate, molasses, raisins, and Christmas cake. Really nice mix. Mouthfeel is pretty creamy and thick. Overall, a great stout.

 

 

Banging out another sweet stout, Pohjala gets back to work banging out an imperial chocolate and vanilla stout that carries the background malty flavors that makes this Estonia brewery so unique.

Jet black and ominously opaque, the froth-lacking, espresso-looking Birthday Banger greets the nose with chocolate, coffee and vanilla cream in a strong cake-like kind of way. Robust sweetness rolls onto the early palate with strong notions of molasses, java milkshake, powdered sugar and nougat.

Its sweetness is unrelenting. A full and chocolaty taste is fueled by copious additions of vanilla cream while the savory cocoa flavors bring a taste of milk chocolate with background coffee flavor. Not to be outdone, a complement to the roast comes with candied coconut, vanilla and cake batter. With very little balance, any semblance to hops seem of aspartame.

Full bodied, creamy and cloying, the beer is decadent and sickly sweet from start to finish. Only appreciated by the most sweetest of tooth, this Birthday Banger is simply too one-dimensional an off balanced to be appreciated outside of a few ounces as a replacement for dessert.

 

 

 

 

Pours a pitch-black coloration with a tiny, fizzy head. Smells of roasted malt, strong notes of dark and bitter chocolate, as well as some tonka and vanilla. Taste follows the nose, with an excellent balance of roasted, slightly caramelly malt and strong notes of dark, bitter chocolate, as well as some tonka, and vanilla, with the tonka standing out particulary and really adding those herbal woodruff notes here. Finishes with a medium bitterness and some chocolate and tonka lingering in the aftertaste. Full mouthfeel with a medium/rich body and medium carbonation.

This makes for quite a rich brew where all of the additives are coming through distinctly, especially the chocolate/cocoa nibs and tonka, but without feeling too oppressive thanks to an excellent overall balance. This could have easily ended up way too sweet and cloying, but there's quite a good roastiness and bitterness to it, which takes care of that nicely, although there's still a noticeable sweetness to this, as well as a medium booziness as well, unfortunately, which really isn't too bad though. Overall, this makes for quite a rich and well-balanced Imperial Stout with strong chocolate and tonka notes, that's just a little too boozy for the ABV.

Blind-tasted except for the beer's name and brewery/country, zero reviews below read (yet!)...
L- Jet black, even held to a halogen bulb I see zero light through it. Pours with brief 1mm dark tan foam cap.
S- Smells of cocoa, but more of a kind of cocoa-liquor than chocolate.
T- Oh heavens, major lactose I suspect, major 'milk chocolate' (round/rich/smooth). Could this also be aged in liquor barrels, whisky? There is an aspect here that is quite Bailey's Irish Cream.
F- It's certainly rich but it doesn't stray near sweet. Big, bold one for slow sippin'.
O- It tastes like a big chocolate stout, and one that is perhaps whisky barrel aged as well. Very nice but very full-on too. Wouldn't want more than an occasional one, in fact this 330ml would be a great candidate to share with another beer fan.
Review1940/scoring all done, now the reveal, I get to read the lables to see what I missed! ==> Added chocolate/cocoa/tonka/vanilla... the vanilla perhaps what came over as lactose...
330ml bottle BB: Bought from TremblingMadness, York/UK as part of a large pick-your own consignment to London.

Bottle at Las Buenas Pulgas, served in a balloon glass. Black color, small head with no retention, a bit of lacing. Aroma of what I guess is Tonka, chocolate, varnish, vanilla, dried fruits, booze and, oddly enough, I think I smell a bit of mint. Full body, sticky texture, flat carbonation. Sweet finish. Taste follows the aroma. Pretty good.