Cake Cake Cake
Aurora Brewing Co.

a unique imperial stout here done with cinnamon streusel, toasted coconut, and vanilla. its not amazing looking from the tap, very little head at all, kind of murky and brown, less refined looking than their others to me, but the nose is amazing. is cinnamon forward but warming not spicy in a way that definitely suggests a baked cinnamon dessert rather than just the spice. the vanilla isnt overdone, and the coconut is awesome, brings out a ton of grain depth too, and this seems chocolatey to me. its also unique for what isnt in it, no barrels, no coffee, and most importantly, no lactose, awesome! the flavors of the added ingredients are all supremely honest and authentic and they marry together real well, coconut and cinnamon really works, the dark chocolate in the roast is killer with both, and the vanilla is just an accent, it doesnt take over as it often can in these. i love that the vanilla is the last thing i taste on each sip, but its never forced. there is a ton to like about this, but unfortunately the beer overall is not a masterpiece. this feels thin and light for what it is, totally devoid of carbonation, and doesnt seem totally clean on the ferment, sweet still at the end, but more than that its almost like stressed yeast. the alcohol pushes through quite a lot as it warms too, and it seems a little sloppy to me in terms of execution, this despite how wonderful all the flavors come together. this has room for improvement, and i only say that because i know these guys are capable of making this into a world class stout. my favorite feature is the cinnamon streusel and how its immediately appreciable as something more than just cinnamon. clever beer overall, nice for winter, a few tweaks from glory...