Night & Day - Monsooned Malabar
Trillium Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

750 ml bottle into snifter, bottled on 4/27/2016. Pours dense pitch black color with a 2 finger dense and rocky dark tan head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Dense soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of huge nutty dark roasted coffee, dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, fudge, vanilla, molasses, toasted dark bread, raisin, plum, cherry, fig, wood, herbal, and roast/char earthiness. Incredible aromas with fantastic complexity and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, coffee, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of huge nutty dark roasted coffee, dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, fudge, vanilla, molasses, toasted dark bread, raisin, plum, cherry, fig, wood, herbal, and roast/char earthiness. Light-moderate roast/char and herbal hop bitterness, with slight fruity yeast tartness on the finish; with lingering notes of nutty coffee, dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, fudge, vanilla, molasses, toasted dark bread, dark fruit, wood, herbal, and roast/char earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, coffee, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a great roasted bitter/sweet balance, and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light dryness from roast/char bitterness, lightly increasing through the glass. Light-medium carbonation and very full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky, and lightly slick/chalky balanced mouthfeel that is awesome. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a light warmth lingering after the finish. Overall this is an insane imperial coffee stout! All around incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, coffee, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to sip on for the big ABV. A highly amazing offering all around.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drank from a 25.4 fl oz (750 ml) bottle purchased at Trillium Brewing Company, Boston, MA
04/27/16
Served in a snifter

Spectacular appearance. The super thick and oily, near pitch black body was topped by an amazingly dense and creamy, three-finger tall, saddle brown head. This almost looked like it was poured from a nitro tap. The crown slowly receded. As it did, a thick wall of sticky lacing coated the entire glass. Later in the session, the lacing broke apart into odd shaped patches.

The nose was stunning. The first thing that hit me were robust, espresso-like notes. Super smooth and fragrant. A touch roasty but not overly so. Rich, dark chocolate came through strong. Semisweet and fudgey. Bit of smokiness. Some dark fruits appeared as well. Plums and raisins were noticeable. Hint of brown sugar. As the beer sat, bright, fruity notes came forth. Somewhat berry-like. Blueberry and cherry notes were detectible. The beer displayed some characteristics typically found in an Ethiopian coffee.

The flavor profile was outstanding as well and incredibly interesting. There was an intense, yet not overwhelming, coffee presence. Even as a "coffee nerd" who has tried some of the most rare and exotic coffee varietals, the coffee in this beer was like nothing I have ever tasted. There was a fruity, citrusy brightness. Cherries and blueberries were noticeable. Chicory notes were also apparent. Somewhat roasty. The roasted malts were there for support but they definitely let the coffee shine. Brown sugar and maple notes contributed some sweetness. Bit of smokiness. The beer was slightly boozy on the back end and the finish. I swore I picked up some bourbon. Subtle roasty and smoky notes lingering after the swallow. With time, both the sweetness and the booze intensified. I actually preferred this beer when it was a bit cooler.

Ultra rich and decadent mouthfeel. Incredibly thick and viscous, even for the style. The liquid contained a fine, subtle effervescence that tuned super creamy and slick on the palate. Tongue blanketing. Simply put, perfect.

Trillium's Night & Day - Monsooned Malabar might not be the biggest, boldest or most intense coffee-infused imperial stout I have ever tried, but it is perhaps the most interesting and complex. This beer was amazingly flavorful and exhibited characteristics I have never encountered within the style. Trillium can be very hit or miss with their coffee porters and stouts, but this was truly flawless.

 

Poured from a 750ml bottle into tulip glasses:

Appearance: black as night, and velvety smooth coming out of the bottle. Large, thick mocha-colored head on top, which sticks around for a few minutes. Totally opaque black color.

Aroma: tons of roastiness and coffee character. Might be the most coffee-forward beer I've ever smelled. Maybe a little fudge, some dark cherry. Can't smell any hops whatsoever.

Taste: I initially rated this at a 4, but have since upped it to a 4.25. There is sooooooo much coffee in this beer it's insane. Super sweet and extremely intense espresso flavor. In addition, there's quite a bit of cherry character in there too. The adjunct definitely leads the way here, but it's delicious.

Feel: heavy, full-bodied. No heat at all, in my opinion.

Overall: this was a great beer. It got much, much better as it warmed too. It's expensive, but I'd definitely drink another one of these.

 

 

huge thanks to rob for the goandpickitupformebro growler of this. VERY much appreciated. filled a few days ago on release day.

far and away one of the best coffee stouts I have tried. but be forewarned, the coffee is HUGE in this beer. the cold brew comes through in a big way. the stout rounds out the body with more roastiness and some nice bakers chocolate. super tasty. gourmet coffee. mmm mm mm.