Manu Negra
Forest & Main - The Brewery

 

Pour is black with a tan foamy head. Nose has a dark roast, some lacto/milk, hint of tobacco and wood, with some dark fruit sweetness. Flavor has a strong roast, faint smoke, milky lacto, and fruity sweetness. Lingering roasted bitterness, slightly oily feel, light body, and moderate carb.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Given the description of this beer on the label, I was really, really confused by what I tasted.

The beer pours a fairly dark, blackish brown color with pretty good head retention and lacing. On the nose, I get a lot of roasty malt and wine, along with some licorice and light vanilla. The flavor profile replicated the nose pretty closely in this very dry style beer, with the wine barrel aging imparting a light sour component as well. This beer is pretty tasty, no doubt, but given the abv., I really thought is a bit thin on the palate. The beer is at most medium bodied, but delivers prlenty of flavor otherwise. Alcohol is very well integrated into the flavor profile, and in fact, the beer drinks like a beer with an abv. of 5% or 6%. When I saw the 8% abv. on the label, I was very surprised.

When I drank this beer, I remember thinking "huh... a barrel aged, low alcohol, dry stout. Interesting. That's not something you see every day." So I was completely blown away when I saw that it's listed as a dark saison. Whatever. This was a tasty beer, and one I was very happy to have the opportunity to sample. Thanks Derek!