Coffee Crumb Cake Cream Ale
Decadent Ales

 

 

 

L: Poured from a tallboy can to a snifter glass. Had a yellowish / brown color and a pretty cloudy consistency. There was an inch and a half of foamy, somewhat long-lasting head. Average lacing.

S: A very good aroma of coffee, citrus fruit, brown sugar, a sugary quality, and malt.

T: Tasted of dusting if the sugary quality (not overly sweet, though), some hops (a strong, subtle backbone), mild malt notes (mostly in the finish, not a big factor), a bit of coffee (less than expected, but still present), and some citrus fruit (orange and lemon, especially). An solid flavor that gets better as you go along.

F: A good amount of carbonation with a smooth finish. Medium-bodied.

O: Not my favorite Decadent beer, but still solid. Worth a look.

16oz can into a pint nonic. Lets see what all the fuss is about.

A: Chill-hazed straw with lots of carbonation, good lacing.

S: Has a golden stout aroma to it, not overly roasty but with all the notes of coffee and sweetness. There are hops here too, not overly bright and the aroma meshes OK.

T: More bready/sweet on the palate, sugary coffee, and a bright citrus hop note that makes the beer feel somewhat disjointed. Hints of chicory and cinnamon.

MF: Fairly big body with some dryness.

O: Doesn't come together at the end, though it is certainly a drinkable beer for me.

While a smattering of breweries here and there have dabbled into the "coffee IPA" trend, it's taken the brewers of Decadent Ales to see this genres full potential.

Built on the back of an Imperial "hazy" IPA, Coffee Crumb Cake sounds like a darker beer but pours rather golden blonde while captured in a dense translucence. As its frothy cap builds, the scent pours over the rim with citrus, coffee, herb, cocoa and spice cake. Sweetened with a plethora of cereal grains, its creamy sweetness seems laced with honey, light caramel and shortbread.

But as the more cake-like flavors and textures start to relax, its the pop of coffee and hops that intertwine in a tight and bright embrace. The robust spice of coffee is robust, pleasantly earthy and carries hints of dark woods, chicory and cocoa while the citrusy hops have a firm grip on orange, grapefruit and pineapple. Trending herbal, spicy and sprucy, the late palate continues its coffee and hop character into a resinous and peppery bitterness in nearly seamless fashion.

Medium full in body, the spice of coffee and the drying nature of hops carry a dryness into the finish while a spice of curacao liquor and kahlua plunges deep into a bright and bitter aftertaste.