Barrel Aged Alpine Ridge
Riverlands Brewing Co

 

Collaboration with Foreign Exchange Brewing Co, aged in rye barrels. Pour is thiccc and syrupy, with a full mouthfeel to match. Very aromatic, with strong hazelnut notes that are a nice touch and somehow combine with the coffee to give a chocolate impression when sipping. The coconut and earthy coffee sit back on the nose but are very present on the palate. It complements the nuttiness of the hazelnuts. The coffee is well balanced, not too dark on the roast and not over-extracted. Much richer than I would expect without any cacao nibs or vanilla, but not too sweet--just lots of malt flavors mingling with the additives. Full bodied with mouth-coating texture, but a bit of a burn on the finish from the rye barrel and booziness.

 

22oz bottle sealed with blue wax.

poured into Durobar Charente glass.

Appearance: Black as midnight. Pours pretty thick. Thin brown cap that quickly drops down to nothing for a head.

Smell: Heavy milk chocolate with a creamy & nutty hazelnut aroma. Light barrel notes.

Taste: Very nice rich chocolate upfront. Hint of dry oak and faint spice rye notes in the middle. Finishes with hazelnut nuttiness.

Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied stout. Low and adequate carbonation levels. Smooth sipper for the listed ABV.

Overall: Nice hazelnut & chocolate stout. Could use more of the barrel notes here as they are pretty light.