Pot of Gold
Great Notion Brewing

massive blended stout, mostly barrel aged i would think, done with coffee, vanilla, and milk sugar. its a monster, its slightly faded and oxidized, its thick and syrupy in texture, boozy, and packed with flavor, really coffee forward, unique beer, but at almost nine bucks a can, i have a hard time saying its worth it. motor oil black, viscous, and leggy in the glass, just a very short dark brown head rises up, settling down quick, this thing is near still, somewhat intimidating in the glass. the nose is heavy black coffee, maybe made a day or two ago and left in the pot, but lots of it, nice with the big roasted barley profile of the stout, some barrel char comes in too, so lots of darkness swirling in this one. some alcohol warmth in the aroma too, sweet vanilla cream, raisin, milk chocolate, and light licorice spice before the papery oxidation. more bourbon as it warms. the flavor comes in waves, coffee first, bitter and getting stale, but sort of cozy too at the same time. vanilla isnt overdone, which is unexpected for these guys, i get some light smoke and then the sexy natural vanilla balance, but its not diabetic, even with the lactose. the alcohol is a lot, a little overly intense at temperature, but it sort of cuts the body down a little so i dont hate it. also neat that this is a blend, i think the non barrel aged element is needed, this would be colossal without it, and it tempers the whiskey enough for it to be an accent not a lead flavor, and i like the hint of burnt wood without it taking over. the coffee drives this, tons of dark grain too, and i end up liking all the body. its smooth, i just wish this were fresher overall. spendy but solid, less flavored than a lot of the great notion stuff, definitely a can to share...

2023 on tap. Zero head and dark as night. Nose is Irish cream, cinnamon, bourbon, roasted malts, and chocolate. Taste is sweet malts, toffee, milk chocolate, bourbon, Irish cream, molasses, and coffee. Thick mouthfeel.

Sampling a 16 oz can slightly chilled and pouring into my snifter. Date stamp is 2/24/2023.
the beer pours a jet black coffee color with dense spongey, tan head of 1.5 cm. This foam fades during the sampling and ends up being almost nothing on the edges of the glass. Some legs , but note really any lattice on the glass when I swirl in my hand.
Aroma is rich and malty with milk chocolate, vanilla, I swear some maple syrup, even though not on the label and a bit of toffee. There is also hints of sweet bourbon, but this is in the background of the aroma. I dont get any hops, and no boozy warmth or fusol notes.
First sip reveals a fairly thick body and sticky coating texture that leaves residue on my lips and on my palate with each sip from the glass. Feels a pretty big beer on the physical traits, definitely going to sip this one.
Flavor is pretty sweet from the start with milk chocolate and brown sugar mixing with vanilla and again, I swear maple syrup. I do get some bourbon notes and there is some warming that comes through on the finish.
I dont get any hop character and the bourbon and vanilla notes linger and come back on the burps. This is a pretty big and sweet beer for sure.
Im glad to have tried this one, not sure if I would be able to drink a second can of this in one sitting.

 

 

Saw bba coffee and vanilla stout and jumped on it; fairly good value too at $8 for the 16oz can. Opaque black pour with a minimal mocha head, fizzy...big sweetness on the nose, vanilla cream leading the charge with some whiskey and coffee and milk chocolate. I had no idea this was supposed to be an Irish Cream-style stout, but boy-howdy does that come through strongly on the palate...intense flavors of Irish Cream and vanilla/whiskey sweetness and warmth. Smooth body with some prickly heat and a thinner mouthfeel than I expected. This isn't really my cup of tea but it isn't bad, its just a bit too cloying and warm for me.

2023-05-12
16oz can served in a WABL sample glass. Dated 02.24.23. Bought it at the brewery a couple weeks ago.

Pours very dark brown, cola-colored around the edges, almost no head, what's there is a brown color and mostly a very thin ring around the edges. Smell is very sweet, very chocolatey, very vanilla-y, and a bit boozy. Coffee is also very noticeable.

Taste is also very sweet, sweetened mocha, lots of chocolate and vanilla (vanilla actually makes me think of marshmallows, which *surely* cannot have anything to do with the thinly veiled Lucky Charms references). There are some deep roasty notes, not quite a char, there are signs of a straight up imperial stout in here, but struggling to come out through the sweetness, chocolate, and vanilla. There's enough of it to not make the sweetness oppressive (for me), but that may not be the case for everyone.

Mouthfeel is thick, not quite syrupy, actually has a bit of a carbonation tickle which is nice. Overall...it's tasty, just barely on the acceptable side of the border into "too sweet" -- which means for some people it's definitely going to be too sweet.

Pot of Gold from Great Notion Brewing. 16 fl oz can from @snaotheus in NBW BIF 17. Reviewed 11/05/23 (Review 3098). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on top rim of can “LUCKY CHARMER 02.24.23”. Stored at 34 degrees at home. Served at 57.7degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature was 63.6 degrees F.
Appearance – 3.75
First pour – Brown (SRM 20), opaque.
Body – Deep Brown (SRM 30), opaque. Under direct light, enough light penetration to make out a light precipitate. When rear lite, opaque.
Head: Average (Maximum one cm, aggressive center pour), brown sugar lightening to tan, high density, quickly diminishing, reducing to a jagged 0.15 cm crown, and no cap.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 4.25 – Initially sweet followed by coffee, no malt, no hops, no yeast. No ethanol (12.5 % ABV as marked on the label). Possibly some hesitant bourbon but that could just be my imagination.
Flavor – 4.5 – Sweet coffee – not quite cloying but close. No hops, no yeast, no vanilla. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Light gastric warming. Alcohol burn appears on the aftertaste.
Palate – 4 – Full; almost syrupy; soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4.25 Both flavor and aroma are good and typical of Impy stouts, but the BBA is weak and the oakiness is nearly non-existent. I would consider classifying this as a Sweet Milk Stout – it’s somewhere between SMS and BBA Impy Stout, to my taste – light on the BBA end and a bit too sweet. The lactose will attack later today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thick and decadent, nice lactose sweetness, medium coffee, mild vanilla and barrel. The barrel is a bit milder than I'd like, but the vanilla and coffee play well together. Drinks like Double Stack minus the maple, plus a mild dose of vanilla. Would have liked more barrel to justify the cost, but on its own, a pretty solid part BA stout.

 

Very dark brown appreciate with a light brown head. Aroma is a mild malt chocolate and vanilla blend. Taste is also a nice blend of chocolate vanilla with bourbon missing.