Donut Stout
Blake's Orchard Ales

Pours a dark brown color with a minimal head that disappears quickly. Aroma is sweet vanilla and cinnamon. Tastes like the cinnamon used in Cinnabon's Cinnamon Rolls. A sweet beer.

 

16 ounce prowler into tulip glass, filled on 11/9/2019. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a light amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, cream, roasted nuts, doughnuts, toasted biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with light notes of bourbon, smoke, dark fruit, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. A bit too fruity/yeasty aromas, but not overwhelming. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, bourbon vanilla, and light earthy hop/fruity yeast notes; with solid strength. Taste of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, cream, roasted nuts, doughnuts, toasted biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with light notes of bourbon, smoke, dark fruit, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Mild herbal, grassy, roast, char, coffee bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, dark roasted coffee, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, cream, roasted nuts, doughnuts, toasted biscuit, brown bread/crust, bourbon, smoke, dark fruit, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, bourbon vanilla, and light earthy hop/fruity yeast flavors; with an awesome roast/hop bitter/sweet balance; and no cloying, acrid, astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering hop/char bitterness. Light-medium carbonation and medium-plus body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky mouthfeel that is great. Minimal warming alcohol as expected of 6%. Overall this is an excellent flavored coffee stout. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, coffee, bourbon vanilla, and light earthy hop/fruity yeast flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the mildly bitter/charred/drying finish. Great soft/silky feel for the ABV. Awesome balance of nicely rich malts, doughnuts, Great Lakes cold brew coffee, and bourbon vanilla flavors; with mild earthy hops and restrained fruity yeast. Light residual sweetness with lingering dryness. A very enjoyable offering, and impressive style example.