Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes
R. Shea Brewing - Merriman Valley

This one was a roll of the dice. It's not my first sweet potato beer, but something made me think that buying this - let alone drinking it - would be a colossal error. Meh, I'd be out $3.25, worst case scenario. But it's good. Really good. And really sweet. It's a pastry stout with maple, so ... duh. Like a dessert stout, do ya? Grab a handful.

Pours dark with moderate carbonation, head fades quick. Nice maple aroma. Good stout base, ample chocolate, great maple flavor, I get vanilla / marshmallow. Sweet potato flavor is moderate but delicious. Medium bodied. Overall a very tasty beer.. glad I tried one.

1/20/23
16 oz can dated 8/31/22
4 rating

 

16 FL. OZ. can
Served in a snifter

This beer pours black and is topped with an inch of tan head that leaves little spots of lacing.

Cloying maple smell. I get some dark chocolate and roasted malt.

Maple flavor followed by milk chocolate. Roasted malt

Medium bodied with a smooth mouthfeel

I have loved pretty much every R. Shea beer to date. This one is disappointing. It just doesn't do it for me.

 

After getting through the pack this is easily my least favorite stout from this place. The adjuncts were essentially absent from the taste profile, especially the maple. Idk. Meh.

Definitely got maple a good bit on the revisit so that's great

16 oz can, poured into a stout glass at ~40 degrees F and allowed to warm during consumption.

L: Poured inky black as stouts are wont to do, and formed about a finger of pale tan head that vanished swiftly. Holding this one up to light reveals some cola-brown translucence around the edges.

S: Egad. That definitely has notes of both maple and sweet potato, for certain. There's a creamy lactose sweetness beneath, but that is definitely woodsy maple and earthy yam right up front.

T: The nose and the label do not lie. This is a creamy sweet milk stout with a heavy whack each of maple and sweet potato flavors. Midway through the sip, an earthy-dirty note manifests, like the yam was freshly dug out of the ground, and remains into the aftertaste. Vegetal notes linger on post swallow as well.

F: Medium bodied, thin for a stout.

O: Interesting. I remain unsure if said interest leans in a good or bad direction for me personally, but it's definitely interesting. I've not had another stout that hits these notes.

Canned on 10/8/20. 16oz can poured into a tulip. Pours almost black; creamy khaki head that falls slowly leaving great thick retention and sticky lacing. The aromas are malt forward. Some cocoa powder. Mild hints of smoke. The aromas are pretty subtle and normal for the style. The flavors follow the nose. Some maple coming through. The vegetable and sweet potato notes are pretty subtle. More cocoa powder. Milk sugars and lactose are there. It's definitely on the sweeter side, but it's not cloyingly sweet. The sweetness takes the flavors up a notch. Strong malt backbone. Alcohol is well hidden. Mouthfeel is full-bodied with low carbonation. It's extremely soft, fluffy, slightly creamy and very smooth.

This is a pretty solid milk stout. It might not be as flashy or adventurous as the name might indicate, but it's still a nice example of the style. The sweetness makes it pretty enjoyable and fun to drink for me. Not bad at all. I like it.

Opaque black with a short lived tan head. Carbonation visible on the sides of the glass. Aroma is toasty dark malt. Taste is sweet as you would expect of a sweet milk stout. I had some doubts about sweet potato beer but it has kind of Thanksgiving Ale vibe to it. The more I drink this the more I like it. It's very smooth. Alcohol does not assault your mouth. The maple comes through without dominating. Mouthfeel is medium full with soft carbonation. Clean finish. A very nice beer to relax with. I would buy it again but I don't think it will be around. R. Shea is good for brewing experiments. I love that!

10/22/20 can @ home