Broken Mug Coffee Stout
Town Square Brewing Co.

1L howler from the brewpub in south-side Edmonton, procured before sitting in traffic still sniffling at Tragically Hip songs on the ol' satellite radio.

This beer pours a solid black abyss, with the barest of amber basal edges, and two fingers of puffy, loosely foamy, and well- bubbly brown head, which leaves some decent layered frilly lace around the glass as it evenly subsides.

It smells of somewhat acrid artisanal coffee beans, roasted bready and doughy caramel malt, bittersweet cocoa powder, none-too-subtle cafe-au-lait, a hint of black licorice, and some mild leafy, weedy, and musky floral green hop bitters. The taste is gritty and grainy caramel malt, a lesser biscuity toffee thing, some free-range ashiness, still on the upside hipster coffee notes, subtle anise spice, and more underwhelming leafy, musty and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is so-so in its plebeian frothiness, the body a decent medium weight, and generally smooth, but for a bit of java astringency making a minor scene here. It finishes trending dry, the coffee, drying malt, and fading hops making it just so.

Overall - this is yet another well-wrought offering from this nascent local brewing concern, who as previously mentioned, is pumping the new stuff out like champs! Here, there is a metric butt-ton of coffee and malt goodness, and that's all I really want to say about this, other than that I'm confused as to which effect will hit me first tonight - the caffeine or the booze. Stand by, but don't really expect much.