Sherpa's Breakfast Kit
Forager Brewing Company

 

A 32 oz crowler sent to me by some nice person some time in early 2019. Pretty sure these were available commercially but I do not know for certain.

The label says it's a hefty 12% ABV.

The pour fizzes out of the can but is tameable once I get it into a glass--very dark black, not ruby but black, with a brown wisp of a head.

The aroma is intense. I haven't even intentionally sniffed it yet but I can smell syrup 2 feet from my face right now. Raising the glass, the maple nodes become oddly subdued and I'm hit with more of a boozy coffee stout rush with some sharply alcoholic charred malt with just a bit of maple sweetness on the very back end. This bodes well...

It comes together excellently, though it might have been a bit better fresh. Sharp, delicious double stout malts up front, some light alcoholic bitterness in the middle, and a finish that tastes the way maple syrup residue smells when it's lingering on your plate. Very sweet on the whole but never so sweet that someone, like myself, who doesn't like aggressively sweet beers would be turned off.

It's surprisingly quaffable and, dare I say, almost kind of crisp. Certainly of its own class among the maple syrup-sodden breakfast stouts, and while it doesn't quite reach the intensity of Kenutcky Brunch it is nonetheless the more drinkabkle beer.

 

This beer is just insane. The maple and coffee are just fantastic. Then you tie in the bourbon and barrel flavors, this beer is just so flavorful. What really jumped out at me was the mouthfeel, thick and sludgy. Great balance, very flavorful, amazing mouthfeel. Simply put, fantastic.

an absolutely amazing barrel aged stout with maple syrup and coffee. the maple here is incredible, super natural and heavy handed in here, thick and viscous, its flavor as well as its texture come through. it also brings out some of the cool woody features of the barrel, and works well with the vanilla note in the whiskey too. this is the right amount of sweetness for the maple to be there, but not have the beer give me diabetes. heavy chocolate notes and deep roast from the malt brings up the coffee roast too, earthy with sweet cocoa and toffee notes, nice with both the maple and the whiskey in here. maybe some vanilla too. gosh this is good, so thick that it evolves and goes down slow, letting me get to enjoy each wrinkle as it passes along, coffee is the right bitterness for balance, and the maple is as good as it gets. the base beer on its own must be a winner too, roasty and rich, heavenly with its luxurious body and long finish. i have been absolutely blown away by these guys in limited exposure, and am frothing to get into more of their beers. this barrel aged sherpa series is insanely good, and the maple one is my favorite among them. an absolute standout!

 

 

 

 

Had this beer Jan 2017. This review is 10/20 on tap. Now with Mostra coffee.

Black color. Tan head.

Smooth, thick, fudgey, creamy. Chocolate and coffee. Light roast. Maple syrup for days. Pastry like body. Very thicccc. Chocolate cake batter.