Whangdoodle - Neapolitan
The Veil Brewing Co. - Production Brewery

Look - black and thick with just a slight head and slight dirty looking probably from adjuncts
Smell and taste - nice blend of the chocolate strawberry and vanilla with lots of barrel
Feel - full boyd with a lighter carb
Overall - great for all thats in it

Very potent, boozy, but pleasant aroma. The barrel treatment is quite noticeable, but the added notes blend into the background with the huge base beer. Notes of apple brandy, oak, bourbon, red grape, chocolate, honeycomb, caramel, toffee, cream, vanilla, and just a hint of strawberry.

If the goal is to come together like Naopolitan ice cream, I can't say it's a huge success. The barrels and base beer are too strong, the strawberry too weak, adding a slight sharpness on the back half but very little flavor. I'm not a huge strawberry fan, so I'm OK with that, but it's got to be a disappointment weighed against the concept.

If the goal, however, was to make a really tasty beer, I'd say they succeeded quite well - albeit a tasty, thick, decadent, slightly messy beer.

Tasting notes are a bit of a melange, with everything kind of shoved together into a crowded subway car, elbowing for room, but not really getting anywhere any quicker. The first notes I pick up are probably from the base stout, with chocolate, caramel, toffee, cream, and toast notes. These are followed quickly by the barrels, with the bourbon arguably slightly more prominent than the apple brandy.

As previously mentioned, the strawberry doesn't come to the forefront until the second half of the sip, and it seems to be accompanied by the apple brandy finally standing out, making for a slightly tart sharpness that stands in contrast to the rest of the beer without significantly improving the flavor. There's simply not enough strawberry, and I think doubling down on the tartness with the apple brandy barrels was a slight mistake.

The back third retains some of the strawberry and apple brandy, but really introduces the vanilla as a major player for the first time, which is quite pleasant. Finish is mostly semi-sweet chocolate, vanilla, coffee.

Do I really enjoy the flavor of this beer? Yes. Do I think it executes the intent particularly well? Not really, although it's not completely NOT Neapolitan ice cream-like. Do I think apple brandy barrel aging was a confusing minor mistake that muddles, rather than enhances, the final product? Absolutely; the bourbon alone would have been perfect, and the apple brandy plus the muted strawberries results in a sharpness without an accompanying fruity sweetness.

On tap at the veil. Dark tan head. Black color.

Rich, molasses, and bourbon char. Thick. The strawberries add a little tartness in the finish. Way more cocoa than vanilla. Wet oak and bourbon. Adjuncts are light, but I find the strawberry off putting in this one. Otherwise good stuff.