Morning Bite
Slack Tide Brewing Co.

 

 

 

Excellent head production and very good retention. Beautiful imperial stout.

Nose definitely implies a roasty stout with coffee, but I don't get anything else implied by the label (thankfully, that means no fish, either). Slightly sharp and metallic. Toast, red grape, coffee, char, nuts, leather.

Similar on the palate: bitter and roasty, delivering plenty of coffee and char, along with leather, pecan, and tobacco. Long after the main sip has faded, the aftertaste has a light woody sweetness. A bit more sweet after several sips.

Very drinkable; lively bite, and medium bodied. Moderately dry, in particular up front.

Thanks to MacMalt for this one. Received in NBS BIF #13.
Pours a deep mahogany in color with a sandy fluff that rises a pretty solid 2 fingers for a moment, then drops to a thin milky head. Decent retention, but spotty lacing.
Nose pushes coffee notes that are both a bit burnt and creamy sweet at the same time. A hint of char and wood peek through as well.
Flavor is predominantly bitter coffee at first, tapering off to woody tobacco, then a tamed nutty sweetness with cocoa.
Mouthfeel is thin enough to make me think "porter." Carbonation is light. It drinks smooth and the ABV is hidden.
Overall, I feel this one hits most of the marks minus the thin mouthfeel.

 

Poured from fresh crowler into Slack Tide tulip glass. It pours jet black with a huge, foamy light mocha-colored head and soapy lacing that persisted through the pour. The nose features roasted malt, burnt coffee, licorice, nuts, and a whiff of black cherry. It's highly aromatic. The first thing I taste is coffee - both freshly brewed and burnt, along with char, tobacco, black cherry, and nuts. It's surprisingly bitter. The flavors are bold but they blend very well. As the glass warms, I'm also tasting some dark chocolate. It has a creamy, chewy mouth feel with low carbonation, and the 11% ABV punches hard. Overall, this is a superb Imperial Stout: big, bold flavor and a creamy, pleasant mouth feel. It's a tremendous achievement for Slack Tide. If this were canned and distributed, then it would be celebrated.