Night Figures
Parker's Hilltop Brewery

32 ounce crowler into pint glass, filled on 3/3/2019. Pours lightly hazy nearly opaque dark brown/black color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and rocky khaki head with awesome retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice dense spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roast coffee, caramel, brown sugar, roasted nuts, toasted oats/biscuit, and dark/brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, toffee, raisin, fig, date, smoke, charcoal, wood, herbal, floral, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, chocolate, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roast coffee, caramel, brown sugar, roasted nuts, toasted oats/biscuit, and dark/brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of molasses, toffee, raisin, fig, date, smoke, charcoal, wood, herbal, floral, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate herbal, floral, woody, grassy, peppery hops; and charred/roasted coffee bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, medium roast coffee, caramel, brown sugar, roasted nuts, toasted oats/biscuit, dark/brown bread/crust, molasses, toffee, raisin, fig, date, smoke, charcoal, wood, herbal, floral, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, chocolate, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with an awesome roast/hop bitter/sweet balance; and no acrid/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering hop/roasted bitterness. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/silky/bready/grainy, and fairly sticky/chalky mouthfeel that is fantastic. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 4.5%. Overall this is a fantastic session oatmeal stout! All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, chocolate, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the mellowly bitter/charred/drying finish. Super flavorful and not watery for the ABV. Amazing balance of rich malts chocolate, and fruity/nutty coffee complexity; with nice earthy hop presence/balance against sweetness, and restrained English yeast fruitiness. A highly enjoyable offering, and amazing style example for the session ABV.