Speedway Stout - Madagascar Vanilla & Ceylon Alba Cinnamon
AleSmith Brewing Company

 

 

Appearance: Deep mahogany in color, with a moderate, dense tan head with superb retention. Thick lacing adorn the glass wall in an unbroken sheet. A slight hint of ruby highlights can be seen at the narrowest point of the glass, before a strong light.


Aroma: Strong cold coffee notes dominate the aroma, with bitter cocoa, milk chocolate, licorice, cinnamon, molasses, wood, and strong and sweet, spicy alcohol.

Taste: The taste begins with strong coffee notes, wood, and dark chocolate. The alcohol is more felt, than tasted, with a gentle warmth, seeming more subtle than in the aroma. Later in the taste, there are notes of milk chocolate, vanilla and a little cinnamon. The finish is replete with dark cholate, coffee, and wood.

Mouth feel: Wonderfully rich and full, with a body like whole milk and the barest hint of carbonation.

Drinkabilty/notes: Very well-made, an "over-the-top" example that is, nonetheless, quite gracious. This would pair well with a rich chocolate dessert, or Oreos.

Presentation: Packaged in a standard sixteen-ounce aluminum can, served in a La Fin du Monde tulip.

 

Type: 16-oz. can
Reviewed as: American Double / Imperial Stout
Glass: Pure Project 14-oz. snifter elemental (air) glass
Price: $4.99
From: Windmill Farms in Del Cerro (San Diego), Calif.
Purchased: Dec. 15, 2021
Consumed: Dec. 30, 2021
Misc.: Canned on Oct. 20, 2021

Went to Windmill Farms for a sandwich and told myself I was going to casually look at beers and grab a few if it made sense. Well, I came back with a 4-pack of Barrel-Aged Ten Fidy and nine singles, including one of these. Their website calls this “For this special edition of our signature imperial stout with coffee we decided to offer up some comfort for the cooler fall and winter months. A generous amount of Madagascar vanilla beans along with just the right amount of Ceylon Alba cinnamon provides this beer a delicate milky sweetness, notes of chocolate, roast, and a subtle spiciness.”

Poured a pitch black color with six fingers of khaki tan rocky head. Could see some bubble streams coming up along the sides of the glass. Very good spotty lacing. Outstanding retention. (Sight - 4.25)

Smelled coffee malts, cinnamon, anise, vanilla, milk chocolate, chocolate syrup, cocoa, chocolate milkshake, caramel and toffee. Got better each whiff. (Smell - 4.00)

Tasted a little better than the nose. This is good. In order got roasted coffee malt, cinnamon, anise, woody bark, vanilla, milk chocolate, chocolate syrup, cacao, chocolate milkshake, caramel and toffee. Pretty smooth for 12 pct. ABV. (Taste - 4.25)

Medium body. Sticky texture. Average carbonation. Long, smooth finish. (Feel - 4.50)

Damn. This was another good Speedway Stout variant. Not my favorite, but not the worst. Glad I picked up a can. (Overall - 4.25)

4.22 | 94 | A-

 

01/29/23 can @ home

One year old. Can to snifter.

L: Pours an almost black, dark brown with a foamy light brown head that leaves a good amount of lacing. Loads of very fine sediment floating around.

S: Dark, malty and somehow hoppy. A tad vanilla and even less cinnamon.

T: Coffee and very dark chocolate. Dark red berries. Bitter and tart. No sweetness whatsoever.

F: Smooth and creamy. Low carbonation.

O: Solid stout that doesn't taste as imperial as its ABV suggested. The adjuncts are less present than expected and the taste notes are rather on the tart and bitter side. Not as good as the base version, but not a bad beer either.

16oz can. Poured out an opaque, jet-black color with a lager, light brown head of bubbly foam. It left sudsy rings of lace on the glass. It had a strong cinnamon aroma with vanilla, coffee, dark chocolate and toffee. Bold cinnamon and roasted coffee taste with vanilla and chocolate notes.

 

 

 

Black like used motor oil
I got vanilla and roast.
Tastes this order
Coffee roast
Vanilla
Cinnamon
Full creamy and soft.
As stouts go, this is upper tier stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

16 oz can, born on 10/20/21, poured into a sampler glass at 47 degrees F:
L - dark and silky with almost no head
S - vanilla
T - very nice blend of flavors, cinnamon understated, nice vanilla and roasted malt flavors
F - thick mouthfeel with minimal carbonation
O - excellent beer

Purchased at Dominion Wine & Beer for $5.99/16oz can. Poured in a small stemmed tulip. Reviewed this beer at home on a Saturday watching Premier League on the television.

Just a bit too sweet (almost cloying) for my tastes. Such a heavy beer that I would plan to split the next pint I ever had. I drank this entire pint over about 75 min. This beer could do with more roastiness at the front of the taste profile. 3.75

A – Pours opaque with a two-finger tan mousey head. Good head retention (+). Average lacing. Great alcohol viscosity on the glass. 4.5

S – Aromas of vanilla, roasty malts, cinnamon, and faint jalepeno. 4.25

T – Vanilla and sweetness. Faint chocolate notes. The cinnamon is in the background and just creates a little heat. The ABV is not noticeable. 3.75

MF – Heavy bodied. Semi-dry finish. But the sweetness transitions to some acridness. Chewy and coating. 3.75