Sherpa's Mexican Vacation
Forager Brewing Company

 

this version of their amazing barrel aged stout has cocoa, vanilla, and chilies added to it. aged in bourbon and rye whiskey barrels, the aroma is heavy with the oak and the booze, more so than some of the other variants of this i have had. the chilies are great in here, almost smoke dried tasting to me like an ancho, not fresh and vegetal at all, more mature that way, and i think easier to integrate with the dark malt complexion, which with the cocoa nibs, has a nice earthy bitterness to it, and just a touch of sweet in the middle. i am really into the vanilla softening the heat, i taste the vanilla more in this one too than i did in the other variants, and that must be by design, as the heat starts to set in on the swallow, the vanilla comes in and mellows it beautifully. coffee suggestion here from the dark grain, heavy roast and even char, light smoke with the peppers, woody from the barrel, and very mature tasting to me. heavy in body, sticky even, but incredibly well developed flavors slowly unfolding the whole time. a really awesome beer, some of the best stout ive had from minnesota are these sherpa series beers. forager is killing it right now!