Champ
White Elm Brewing Company

 

L - jet black with a thin mocha head
A - roasted dark chocolate and cinnamon
T - toasted malt, dark chocolate, vanilla and cinnamon.
F - moderately carbonated and slick.
O - very nice beer. Great balance and flavorful. Sweet without being overly so.

From @The-Adjunct-Hippie

Big thanks to The-Adjunct-Hippie for this one.

12oz can - un-dated - poured into a snifter at room temperature

Pours an inky jet black, with half a finger of deep brown head that disappears in moments, leaving behind a tiny collar, and razor thin island patches. Zero lacing. Looks like your typical big stout.

Nose: Mexican hot chocolate. Dark cocoa, vanilla, a touch of cinnamon, a hint of chili pepper, as well as a deep coffee note, and something that reminds me of tiramisu. There's a sweet cream note underneath it all. Sort of a caramel/praline thing going on. All wrapped up in a blanket of roasted malt. It smells sweet, rich, and delicious. Lots going on.

Palate: Roasted malt and a massive dose of vanilla hit first, followed by dark chocolate, cinnamon, and that guajillo chili. The chili is just a faint warm tingle at first, almost undetectable, but with each sip, it comes alive more and more. It's a nice touch. It's the same effect you'd get from a well made Mexican hot chocolate. No green, fresh pepper notes. Nothing savory. Nothing smoked. It's just a hint of spice. Lots of vanilla, lots of dark chocolate, a firm, but not overbearing sweetness, slight pepper warmth, hint of cinnamon, and then as the finish approaches, the roasted malt flavours begin to come into frame, and add some nice balance to the sweetness of it all. It isn't ashen, charry, or bitter in any way. It's a very nice level of roast, akin to a breakfast roast coffee, and it gives some slight dryness and closure to everything. The finish lingera on with gentle coffee-like roast notes, dark chococlate, vanilla, and the chili peppers surface once more, and close things out with a very gentle spicy warmth.

Mouthfeel/Body: Thick, soft, slightly creamy, with a detectable level of viscosity. The effervescence is extremely fine - finer than champagne, giving just a hint of texture as it fights its way through the heft of the beer. It's much needed, much appreciated, and very well done.

Overall: This is a very nice dessert stout. I think it's sufficiently sweet and decadent enough to categorize it as a dessert stout. The guajillo peppers are a really wonderful touch, and add a whole extra level of depth and flavour. The roast is perfectly done, and lends no bitterness or ashen charry bite. If I had to find a flaw, it would be that this could probably have done without the vanilla, or maybe with a little less. It adds a sense of greater sweetness, and I find vanilla in beer can often mimic the taste of lactose, which I'm not particularly fond of. It's slightly artificial in nature, and doesn't benefit the beer, in my opinion - however, the roast and the peppers work nicely to counter that a bit, and I find this to be a wonderfully enjoyable and unique imperial dessert stout. Some time in a bourbon barrel would work wonders on this, I feel.

 

 

12 oz can poured into Boiler snifter.

Deep thick black comes from the can and forms the same inside the globe. The head is a fingernail but stays reliably.

Aroma of cocoa nibs, chocolate malt, roasted barley, slight chiles, cinnamon, and chocolate milk.

Flavor brings a heavy handed presence of cocoa and chili peppers, followed by piney hop, chocolate milk, cinnamon, and vanilla.

Feel is slick and thick, with a nice oily feel and a burning sensation as it travels down. Though there was a lot of hiss from the can there's not much that translates in the body.

Overall a very enjoyable mexican chocolate stout, and while it lacks the sweetness and robustness of its barrel aged counterpart, it is a top notch base beer and should be sought out and enjoyed.