Karl Strauss Oatmeal Stout
Karl Strauss Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Haven't had this in years, but since I'm on a Karl roll here it goes:
A: Dark brown. Almost Guinnessy, but not quite that dark.
S: Stale, almost like an unfresh beer. Little bitter at first, but goes down smooth.
T: Watery, like lofat milk.
M: Was expecting more from a dark stout. Common oatmeal stout. Nothing too much going on.
O: Sometimes it's better than others, but oh well.

Poured a deep, deep brown with the nitro catching up in the glass and a whispy white head. Nose was faint and not good. I could barely pick up anything on it. Taste was so muted I could not tell if it were a Guinness or Oat Stout. No oats, no real taste, not real good. Mouthfeel was dry and full but again a little roasted malts, no oats and not much taste.

Looks good. Actually is a blackish brown, unlike the reddish brown "Russian Imperial Stout" I had from Karl Strauss a few years back. Even smells okay, with a whiff of oatmeal and a bit of roasted malt.

Taste very mediocre. You have to try to make a stout I don't like. The coffee and oatmeal taste ... strange, almost like they're stale. In a beer, that's weird. Really muted roasted malt tones.

For a beer with a good looking head and decent color, mouthfeel was surprisingly thin, water, and lacking carbonation.

Tap @ Sorrento Valley. Pours very dark brown with a short tan head. Fresh-cut oat aroma with roasted oats and malt. Smooth, but a little watery in the mouthfeel. Lovely roasted oat and malt flavor, and a nice cocoa sweetness. Some baker's chocolate/burnt coffee bite, but not much. Only real complaint was the mouthfeel, otherwise, this is a fine beer.