Hand In The Cookie Jars
Branch and Blade Brewing
- From:
- Branch and Blade Brewing
- New Hampshire, United States
- Style:
- Imperial Pastry Stout
- ABV:
- 8%
- Score:
- +8 ratings needed
- Avg:
- 4.37 | pDev: 0.69%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 1
- Status:
- Inactive
- Rated:
- Jan 11, 2020
- Added:
- Jul 21, 2019
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
NO SCORE
-
-
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews.
Reviewed by ichorNet from Massachusetts
4.4/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.4/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
This seems to be a riff on a previous beer by B&B called Hands in the Cookie Jar, which was under 5%... this version is 8% and features Dominican cacao nibs, vanilla, and brown sugar. How utterly decadent! I have had mixed experiences with B&B before, but I would say that they tend toward quality. Sure, they're batchy like a lot of NH breweries, but that doesn't freaking matter if you never make the same beer twice!
Pours a terrifying deep brown with some maroon undertones. There is no head to this beer, even with an intense and forward pour... it just doesn't build up any foam. Under normal circumstances, I'd consider that a big negative and probably consider dinging the beer a half-point for such an oversight, but I'm willing to be generous here and say that the adjuncts are likely to be the cause of this inconsistency, thus hand-waving it pretty much entirely. After all, the tar-black appearance is proof enough that B&B know what's up... this looks like a beer several percentage points stronger than it actually is!
The nose is a metric ton of cocoa powder, dark-roast espresso, and vanilla beans, combined and directly inhaled... this is very concentrated and likely to be very flavorful, to be sure. It reminds me of uncooked cookie dough from Toll House cookies or something like that... so decadent and intense. I get some cinnamon/clove-like spiciness too if I really put my nose in this. I'm a fan right off the bat. Let's hope the flavor profile keeps things going well!
My first sip bursts forth with the cinnamon-like spice I noted in the nose, then follows that up with charred coffee beans and caramelized bread crusts. Strong dark chocolate bitterness and brown sugar-laden sweetness in the mid-palate, leading to a semi-sweet finish thanks to the vanilla. This is way more well-balanced than I expected it to be. Kudos to Branch and Blade for doing such a good job with this one! As this warms, it gets a bit doughy, like a good cookie... some awesome notes of caramel, cinnamon and chocolate chips come out here and there and I'm honestly wondering if there's ever been a better "cookie stout." I've had some but this one strikes a great balance between flavor and drinkability while still remaining strong and sturdy.
Feel is full-bodied and rich, with a massaging yet unobtrusive carbonation element that lets the immense flavors of this beer travel across the palate while fading away toward the finish to let you experience the cookie-like sensation to the fullest extent. This is a superb flavored imperial stout that I'm glad doesn't get too self-indulgent or over-the-top... instead, it works well within the parameters it sets for itself, with the adjuncts it utilizes. More small breweries could probably learn from B&B in this case.
Jul 21, 2019Pours a terrifying deep brown with some maroon undertones. There is no head to this beer, even with an intense and forward pour... it just doesn't build up any foam. Under normal circumstances, I'd consider that a big negative and probably consider dinging the beer a half-point for such an oversight, but I'm willing to be generous here and say that the adjuncts are likely to be the cause of this inconsistency, thus hand-waving it pretty much entirely. After all, the tar-black appearance is proof enough that B&B know what's up... this looks like a beer several percentage points stronger than it actually is!
The nose is a metric ton of cocoa powder, dark-roast espresso, and vanilla beans, combined and directly inhaled... this is very concentrated and likely to be very flavorful, to be sure. It reminds me of uncooked cookie dough from Toll House cookies or something like that... so decadent and intense. I get some cinnamon/clove-like spiciness too if I really put my nose in this. I'm a fan right off the bat. Let's hope the flavor profile keeps things going well!
My first sip bursts forth with the cinnamon-like spice I noted in the nose, then follows that up with charred coffee beans and caramelized bread crusts. Strong dark chocolate bitterness and brown sugar-laden sweetness in the mid-palate, leading to a semi-sweet finish thanks to the vanilla. This is way more well-balanced than I expected it to be. Kudos to Branch and Blade for doing such a good job with this one! As this warms, it gets a bit doughy, like a good cookie... some awesome notes of caramel, cinnamon and chocolate chips come out here and there and I'm honestly wondering if there's ever been a better "cookie stout." I've had some but this one strikes a great balance between flavor and drinkability while still remaining strong and sturdy.
Feel is full-bodied and rich, with a massaging yet unobtrusive carbonation element that lets the immense flavors of this beer travel across the palate while fading away toward the finish to let you experience the cookie-like sensation to the fullest extent. This is a superb flavored imperial stout that I'm glad doesn't get too self-indulgent or over-the-top... instead, it works well within the parameters it sets for itself, with the adjuncts it utilizes. More small breweries could probably learn from B&B in this case.
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