Kukulkan
Hackensack Brewing Company

Decanted from a 32 oz (946 ml) crowler into a Sam Adams Perfect Pint; filled and purchased at the Hackensack Brewery last Saturday.
A: Pours an almost black hue with garnet highlights, very low carbonation, clearing to a khaki rim, then nothing and no lacing.
S: Aromas of good, medium roast, black diner coffee, dark, milk chocolate, and peppers. Believe I pick up plum and star anise.
T: Sweet to semisweet. Flavors mirror the nose, with a strong emphasis on chocolate. Star anise, ?cinnamon, and chili pepper notes blend into a bitterness that creates a tingling on the tongue.
M: Medium bodied, but virtually effervescence.
O: I addressed this when I reviewed Moment's Notice, but will repeat it. I "grew up" with Irish porters and stouts and tend to favor darker, fuller brews, in general, so I am biased, but also, as the Irish are wont to say, have certain "notions," i.e. expectations. The flavor palate is solid. Acknowledging that this was a crowler, it was a week old and this beer and that is the Crowler I opened after one day were literally flat immediately or at least within minutes of the pour. New brewery, finding its way, that I get. I have been to several other breweries that have learned this lesson and will not distribute their stouts in crowlers: my experience with this beer, I believe, is why. I am sure this would have been glorious on tap, but really just isn't in this format. Friendly advice to the artist, offered humbly.