Vanilla Whole Latte
White Elm Brewing Company

 

16 oz can, no date, into Ghost In The Machine Teku.

Super slick black with a tall creamy tight knit head of 1 finger. Leaves generous gloopy lacing as it is swirled.

Aroma is popping and enticing with cinnamon and vanilla spiced coffee notes, slightly cinnamon-peppery but not quite fully. A hint of cloying lactose on the far end of the nose, you can definitely tell it's here. Roasted malt and caramel malt. In the glass the aroma hits you first with vanilla/creme/caramel, and THEN the coffee, but I feel like getting a condensed version of the beer through a narrow vessel before it's been exposed to oxygen gives me the best picture. I try to do both for a full spread.

Flavor is artisan coffee - hints of peanut butter and dark char among the fruity and spicy coffee bean notes. Towards the middle you get some vanilla, cinnamon, and oreo creme (white stuff). It never gets too cloying or even hints at it which is monumental to me. That's my biggest fear as of late with the White Elm stouts, and this one really plays nicely with my palate. Crispy vanilla and very mild pastry crust finish this one out.

Feel is slick, smooth, creamy, and most importantly - roasted. Woo, really nails that coffee vibe. Moderate warming alcohol cradles the tongue and stomach, nearly perfect for this thick 8%'er.

Overall, best NEW stout I've had from White Elm in nearly 2 years. This one really hits the markers. Just a solid sweet coffee treat. I'd say it's a rung below Sump and two rungs below Parish Reve, but those two are hard contenders. Will definitely seek more of this one out if it's still around. Very impressed with this new White Elm offering. Dial back the sugar like you did here. You're on the right track fellas.

$3.99 @ Taylor's Pantry

Poured into a Nonic pint glass.

Pours somewhat thinner than anticipated, definitely not "viscous," but not water either. Opaque and blackish brown with modest head and zero lacing.

Aromas of cream and vanilla at the fore with hints of coffee/cacao.

The brew hits the tip of the tongue with cream and sugar sweetness but not artificially so. In midstream, coffee and vanilla both manifest, before the closing notes of mild booze and slightly bitter roasty malts. Simple but very evocative of the latte description on the can, and not cloying at all in the sweetness.

Although only medium bodied, the brew is creamy and silky-smooth. Ordinarily I would prefer a bit more carbonation, but here, the roast and booze is just enough to do the trick.

"Simple" doesn't have to mean "ho-hum." Although a bit thin compared with many of the style, this is undoubtedly a milk stout, and tastes like what it purports to be--a creamy vanilla-coffee brew. Although wandering a bit close to "pastry stout" territory for my usual preference, the restraint on the sugar is what keeps this one out of that lane, and makes for a pretty tasty brew.

White Elm Vanilla Whole Latte Imperial Milk Stout, 8% ABV. Pours thin and black with a half-finger medium-brown head that dissipated quickly, leaving no lacing. Nose is vanilla and lactose. Taste is coffee, vanilla, and lactose, slightly sweet, slightly bitter. Mouthfeel is thin but smooth, owing to the lactose, and undercarbonated. Overall most excellent. This isn't a pastry stout, but pastry-stout-adjacent.