Moonstriker
Ex Novo Brewing

 

On tap at the Horse Brass, the menu notes that this was a collaborative effort with Moonstruck chocolates from Portland. I'm a big fan of their chocolate, and the descriptions sounded intriguing. While the beer wasn't bad, I found it to be a toned down version of a lot of chocolate, chili pepper infused porter and/or stout. The mouthfeel was pretty thin (can't remember the abv., but I think it was fairly low, and I suspect that might have been a factor with the thin mouthfeel), and while the flavor and aroma was pleasant, I just found myself wishing for a bit more of everything. Otherwise, this is a fairly simple, straight forward porter, displaying some pleasant flavors of chocolate, light vanilla and spice. There's a hint of spice and heat from the peppers as well, but the chili pepper flavor is really pretty tame, and should scare off anyone who's not a fan of chili in their beer.

Shrug. Not bad, but there are plenty of better options out there when it comes to this increasingly popular style.