Schism Oatmeal Stout
Gold Camp Brewing Company

 

this one was a lot less impressive and unique than the crazy irish/scotch they had on, but its not bad. looks the part, nice and shiny black in the glass, but not a ton of head on it. i can smell the oats, i can smell a rich coffee type roast on the unmalted barley, and i can smell a decent dose of probably english type hops. the taste is not quite there for me though, and that goes hand in hand with the feel. its slightly tannic, perhaps sparged too hot, sharp instead of smooth, not flattering to the style. there is also a lack of carbonation with this one. so many newer breweries struggle with consistency on carbonation, and these guys, albeit with a limited sample size, appear to be in a similar boat. the flavors are nice, but the contribution of the oats is overshadowed by that thin sharpness. maybe more oats are needed, maybe a process tweak. it seems like the execution of this beer has not lived up to the potential of its recipe. that said, i could happily drink one of these right now.