Layered
New Trail Brewing Company

 

 

this is real good, sweet sure, but it is what it says it is, coconut and pecan and cocoa and vanilla, its decadent, maybe a one and done beer for me, but really quite well executed for what it is. these sorts of things have the tendency to taste cheap or forced, overdone on the adjuncts, but bold as this one is, it does not fall into those traps, there is a certain honesty and authenticity to it that is rare in beer like this in my experience, and i appreciate this more than i like it, if that makes sense. inky near black and viscous, short dark brown head on it, big aromas of milk and dark chocolate, espresso beans, toasted coconut, and malt sugar, this is going to be rich. the pecan part is sort of candied to me, a praline kind of thing, identifiable in the aroma but more than just the nut. surprisingly its not all that boozy to me in the nose, there is a lot of depth here, and while its desserty, its not diabetic. huge body to this, i feel its heavy molten texture even before the taste hits my tongue, palate coating and throat coating going down, massive. tons of chocolate on the flavor, more than just the nibs, the malt plays it up too, nicely layered, molasses notes here as well, great with the coconut, some earthiness and bitter roast to balance the obvious sweetness. the pecan is the unique element here, and i wanted it to be a little more natural, to me its candied, not sure how they added it or what exactly they used, but its just off from real to me, i could be wrong. the body is colossal, the residual sugar is there, and now i feel the alcohol creeping in, more as it warms too. i like the depth, and i think the interplay between all the added ingredients is a success, even though i wish this were a little drier. super fun, unique in the style, and another solid beer from these guys. i was impressed with all of them i had in a recent weekend with a whole fridge full of their stuff. big thanks to my friend for bringing all these up from PA to share with me!

 

The slightest of dark khaki colored froth quickly recedes, from one side to the other... Color is Aubergine and a slight bit of light leaks in around the edges... Complex nose with chocolate covered cherries, cocoa nibs, coconut and light vanilla... Palate is a mirror image of the nose but has tons of depth and complexity... Thick and chewy but never overwhelming... Stellar beer, possibly the best from the expedition collaborations so far...

 

Probably flavourful and potent enough, this will get started with a single twelve ounce can poured into a clear glass Imperial pint mug. Already, there's much to see and smell. First, the scents of pecan, chocolate and coconut hit the nose. The pour produces a very dark brown liquid with a foamy light brown head. The head quickly recesses into a very small one, leaving no glass lacing as a legacy. As the liquid approaches the face for a taste, some alcohol also introduces itself to the nose. It's super rich, very smooth, without much of notice of the high ABV. It's so flavorful, roasted malt can only be detected during the finish, were it turns the milk chocolate into dark chocolate tastes. Every one of the added flavors can be tasted somewhere and even those offended by lactose in an ale may accept its contributions here. Certainly in the subset of stouts, this desert stout is as good as they get. Like most of them, one at a time will usually be enough.

 

Dull matte black with a short, taut level foam head settling to almost nothing but a syrupy black surface that actually leaves clear legs on the glass after a tilt.

Smell is pretty classically roasty and plain as it first pours out of the glass, but first taste is quite sweet of coconut pastry.

Its medium-full thickness is cut by a slightly sharp carbonation with some heat, which brings out a hint of raspberry in the chewy semi-sticky yet dry finish. Whereas the roast becomes mildly nutty on the palate, and at the same time recedes behind chocolate with hints of vanilla.

The dryness keeps it from feeling or tasting too sweet, and it remains thoroughly drinkable throughout the entire session. It teases decadence yet exercises restraint, translating more classically in a weird way .

Pours black like midnight oil with a chocolate head.

Smells of chocolate, coconut, coffee, vanilla, and roasted nut.

Taste like full on German chocolate cake, with notes of chocolate, coconut, roasted pecan, and vanilla.

12oz can received from JayO'Rear via NBS BIF #13. No date on the can, but, per the abv listed on BA, I'm not too worried about this being an older can.
Apparently, this is a collaboration beer, brewed by New Trail with Voodoo Brewing.

Poured into a snifter, this was very dark brown color, virtually black, and looked to have considerable viscosity. Decent sized mocha colored head.

Initially, the nose wasn't much. Roasty and bitter. But left to warm up, after a few minutes, those vaunted adjuncts began to make themselves felt. Soon, a rich, sweet, nutty aroma was emanating from the glass.

Once warmed, this was sweet and rich tasting, to the point of almost obscuring it's being a stout. Seemed fairly well balanced. The pecans stood out the most to me. The lactose seems almost more textural than anything else.

Pretty full bodied, with a creamy, milky mouthfeel.

This works quite well as a dessert beer, and, despite a long list of adjuncts, seems well balanced. Also, the 12oz can is, at least for me, the perfect. Much as I'm enjoying it, a larger serving would've been too much of a good thing. Thanks, Jay!

 

 

 

Poured into a goblet: color is black, tan head with fine bubbles, head dissipates to nothing but ring along glass, no lacing, no lingering froth.

Smell is roast, chocolate, coffee, booze, light vanilla.

Taste is flavored pecan and vanilla, lactose, booze, coffee, roast, cocoa - overpowered up front by the flavorings and distracting from the base beer.

Mouthfeel is low carbonation, moderate/strong sweetness, moderate bitterness and sharp booziness.

Overall a brew that has an entirely different aroma than taste with limited flavoring noted in aroma but dominant in taste; strong pecan/vanilla flavoring in taste that takes away from the base stout beer. Still really sweet and tough to finish.

A - Dark brown pour with thin lacing.

S - Deep, dark, cocoa aroma with lactose and some booziness.

T - Booziness, roasted cocoa, vanilla, coconut, and finishes with a toasty sweetness with no one flavor overpowering the other.

M - Thick, silky, and leaves a wet finish in the back of the mouth.

O - Nice lingering cocoa but can really do without the lactose craze.