Forever Awake - French Breakfast
Cerebral Brewing

From @turkeysdrinkbeer in February 2022. Drunk in November that year.

L: Inky, oily, jet black. Minimal to no head. Unseen carbonation travelling up the glass roils around at the very top of the beer, unimpeded by the lack of anything approaching a head.

S: Aroma is, at first, surprisingly neutral. There's some hot alcohol and some sticky caramel, but I'll come back to it once it's warmed even more....

Having done so, there's smooth hazelnut, some mild, milky coffee, and a tangy caramel/cola thing going on.

T: The taste is very smooth. There's milk coffee, with the hazelnuts probably contributing to that milky note I'm getting. Chocolate pops it's head up after the coffee. I always get a cola/raspberry note with stouts, presumably from whatever crystal malt is in the grist and this one is no outlier there. Alcohol is unnoticeable, which is pretty impressive for an 11% beer.

I'm nursing the last quarter of the beer as I type this bit, and the sweetness of the beer has really kicked in, to the point where it's overwhelming the coffee notes completely. I'm not sure I'm enjoying this evolution of the beer. Maybe the lack of noticeable alcohol and carbonation unbalances things a bit towards the end. Still, the strong early start means this is marked as a 4.

M: Mouthfeel is lush, oily and ultra-smooth. There's almost no perceptible carbonation in the beer, but there is a slight prickle on the swallow and towards the end of the beer I am noticing a nice warmth in my stomach.

O:. Ultimately this beer didn't do it for me, with that back-end sweetness throwing the beer out of balance and causing me to notice sticky lips and a tendency to linger before the next sip.

Cheers

Poured into a Valerie bertonelli stout glass from a 16oz can. Beer pours black, thick as motor oil. Large Cafe au lait colored head, soapy and oily, which quickly fades into a thin film along the circumference of the glass. Smell is all roasted grains, espresso, and a light aroma of chicory. Reminds me of late nights at Paris on the Platte drinking their chicory laced cappuccino. Taste is big Coffee, charred malts, black patent anyone? The smoke is an afterthought, which is a shame. It's hiding back there migling with dark chocolate, espresso, boozy sweet toffee. The mothfeel is fucking glorious. It's thick, and sticky, it coats the tongue. Black velvet espresso goodness for days. My only beef is the smoke isn't as pronounced as I had hoped. It lives up to that French breakfast moniker. New Orleans chicory Coffee, a little voodoo, Marie laveau would be proud....

 

Deep, dark brown body, looks black in the glass; decent head, semi-creamy in texture, soapy in appearance. Strong French roast coffee nose with some chocolate notes; sweet. Big caffeinated coffee taste blended with bitter chocolate; espresso; a touch of vanilla. Heavy body; slick and oily on the palate; generally heavy sweetness to the mouthfeel while the coffee adds an offsetting dryness.

The can calls this a "smoked imperial coffee stout", going further to say the beer was "conditioned on Mostra Ghost Bear Espresso Blend". The espresso character is quite evident, but I didn't pick up any real smokiness to the beer. But the espresso conditioning pairs nicely with the imperial stout, so if you like a bold coffee beer, this is one to try.

Poured at 43 °F; no canning date found on the can or label.