Dark Ages: Vanilla
Noble Roots Brewing Company

cool that they had two variants of this big stout on tap when we visited, this one and the coffee edition, all at our table liked this one better i think, but they do a blend of the two that is also nice, the best of both worlds, the vanilla is bold and real in this, high quality in aroma and flavor, and that defines this for me, especially at temperature, well ahead of the dark roast and any bitterness, it covers up some of the malt too, like this isnt really all that complex, but its dark vanilla juice and its delicious. slight froth to the light brown head it pours with, nice uniform black look to this, mid level viscosity as these go, not super leggy or thick. the aroma and flavor features the regal freshly split and scraped vanilla pod character, along with light smoke, dark chocolate, and indeed a coffee note here too, very little middle malt sweetness but the vanilla brings some, pretty well hidden alcohol, back end bitterness, and not too heavy in terms of body, even sort of approachable for the style, credit to them for what must have been a longer fermentation. i like the fresh vanilla on the aftertaste, the light toffee and molasses layers that creep in as it warms, and the cohesiveness of it all. nice recipe and nice execution, i see they do a rum barrel version of the base stout, i bet that one is fire!