JP's Bastian Black Forest Cake
James Page Brewing Company

From the bottle labeled "Craft Beer Explorers", it pours a clear black with a light brown head that quickly dissipates to a thin layer. Currently, my nose doesn't get much due to a cold. In the mouth, it is smooth and creamy and has a light taste of cherry and malt.

Got in a trade with The-Adjunct-Hippie. 12 ounce can into pint glass, no can dating. Pours lightly hazy/cloudy nearly opaque very dark brown color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky khaki head with amazing retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Dense soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big juicy/lightly tart/tangy cherries, fruit skin, milk chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, nuttiness, cake batter, and toasted brown bread; with light notes of coffee, fudge, marshmallow, smoke, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity of cherries, dark/roast/bready malt, and vanilla notes; with great strength. Taste of big juicy/lightly tart/tangy cherries, fruit skin, milk chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, nuttiness, cake batter, and toasted brown bread; with light notes of coffee, fudge, marshmallow, smoke, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Very mild herbal/roast bitterness and fruit tartness on the finish. Lingering notes of cherries, fruit skin, milk chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, nuttiness, cake batter, toasted brown bread, light coffee/fudge/marshmallow, and roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of cherries, dark/roast/bready malt, and vanilla flavors; with a solid roast/hop bitter/sweet and fruit tartness balance; with zero cloying flavors after the finish. Slightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and fruit tartness. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety, and lightly sticky/tangy/chalky mouthfeel that is nice. A touch thin, but impressively smooth and silky. Zero warming alcohol for 6.2%. Overall this is a delicious flavored sweet stout. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of cherries, dark/roast/bready malt, and vanilla flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the minimally bitter/tart finish. Captures the cake flavors really well. Nicely rich well rounded stout malt complexity, and balanced cherry/vanilla flavors. Never overly sweet or syrupy on fruit, doesn't taste too artificial either. A very enjoyable, unique, and well made offering.

Appearance – One and a half finger head on a clear dark brown body.

Aroma – Sweet cherries and pond water (!).

Taste – Cherries, bitter, a bit medicinal like cough syrup.

Mouthfeel – Slightly astringent and a little thin.

Overall – An interesting concept but I don’t think it worked out well.

Pours a deep dark brown color with shades of cherry. The brown head is huge and is 3 fingers to start which then recedes to a firm, fluffy 1/2 finger of head.

Quite a bit of metallic aroma coming from across the table, but as it's brought to the nose, though the metallic aroma though still there, its somewhat buried by rich chocolate cake and dark cherries.

Flavor is much of the same, bringing forth some metal first, and then red velvet cake without the frosting, finishing on hints of fudge and coffee.

Feel is sublime. Very creamy, smooth, the texture is near perfect. Mild carbonation supports the creaminess from sagging, and it's just velvety.

Overall, it reminds me of a Short's beer. Kind of extract-y, but also kind of genuine. It is for sure beer first, dessert second. A couple off flavors, but they're muted. Just like Short's. Nicely done.

12oz can, with the name Black Forest Cake, I am assuming it's a cherry and chocolate flavored beer. Pours near black with a thinner tan head. Muted aroma of chocolate and fruit. Flavor is very sweet, stouty and chocolatey, some cherry-like sweetness, a bit of roast and black malt. Lighter body than expected, finishes cloyingly sweet. Interesting beer to try, but I wouldn't get it again.

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from a 12oz can into a tulip glass. The can said 6.2% ABV, but tasted lighter. Dark brown to almost black with a tan head and lacing the rapidly disappeared. A very woodsy, forestry taste resembling a Christmas tree. More black forest than cake. Very unique, but definitely a fall or winter type beer. Not as heavy as a regular stout. Worth a try during the Christmas season.

Dark porter pours little to no head. Smells like chocolate with hints of raspberry. Smooth taste starts off sweet with bitter chocolate notes. Thin body. Very drinkable, excellent dessert beer.