When the concept for this week of posts was floating around in my brain I believe it was a result of thinking of this beer.  With all of the reviews that I have done over the time I have done this site I know that this is the only beer that has received an A+ using any of my grading systems.

Lately I have realized that I am not often in the mood to drink big stouts like this but I don’t know that means that I would like this beer much less.  I think that since the review was done so early on that the complexity of the beer blew my mind.  It makes sense for me to go back sometime soon and revisit this one to see if my palate still gives it such a high mark.

Click on the photo below to see why I thought it was so go way back then . . .

After sitting down to evaluate this beer again I took a look at the first review I did of it months ago and there are not too many differences between the two.  I am hoping that is because the beer has not changed all that much and it is not because my palate has not evolved over that time.  The thing that stays the same with each of these home brew revisits that I do is that each one reminds me how long it has been since I have brewed even one batch.  A brew day needs to find a way onto my calendar very soon.

Getting back to it after a Monday off . . .

Brewery: Blueprint Brewing (Winter Park, FL)

Name: CMS Report

Style: American Stout (if not S-H-V Beer)

ABV: 3.28% (+/-)

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and pulled slightly early to warm a bit before being served in a pint glass.

Aroma: A nice, slightly sweet roasted malt aroma with notes of chocolate and seemingly a hint of herbal spiciness (root beer-like).  Not overwhelming but very nice.  – 9.5/12

Appearance: Dark, dark brown (let’s say black).  Two finger plus light brown head that is frothy with pretty good retention and leaves some lacing on the glass.  Opaque even when held to light though you can barely see through at the edges. – 3/3

Flavor: Slightly sweet roasted malt flavor up front with good notes of bittersweet chocolate after that.  Some roasted bitterness and hop bitterness from middle to finish.  There is an herbal character at the finish that is subtly menthol-like.  Light dryness on the finish with quite a bit of lingering roasted malty sweetness.  – 12.5/20

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with a high level of carbonation that lends some bite.  Smooth and somewhat creamy, but also with some astringency. – 4/5

Overall Impressions: Really good head retention actually that helps it present well.  Still a pretty good beer overall, but definitely on the way down (tasting a little old).  Has some rougher edges than I remember from before but I am surprised it has held up this well with the low ABV.  definitely enough there to try the recipe again in the future (hopefully without the boil over).  Would make some good ice cream and would pair well with chocolate cake.– 6/10

Grade: B (35/50)

Blueprint Brewing - CMS Report

Fruit beers are not something that I often choose to drink , but I do find that the correct use/type of fruit in a stout can be really nice.  Putting fruit to an American Wheat Ale or the like is frequently too prominently fruity to me, but a subtle fruit character in a darker beer tends to suit me just fine.  While I will not say that this one was great, I can say that it has some things going on that I really did enjoy as I drank it.

Easing gently into the weekend . . .

Brewery: Bell’s Brewery, Inc. (Comstock, MI)

Name: Cherry Stout

Style: Fruit Beer

ABV: 7.00% (on bottle)

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge, pulled slightly early to warm some, and served in a pint glass.  A stout brewed with cherry juice.

Aroma: A deep roasted malt aroma with strong notes of cherry floating on that.  The two characteristics combine into a sweetness that is like chocolate covered cherries.   – 8.5/12

Appearance: Dark, dark, dark brown in color (black really).  Slight deep brown head that is pretty thin, dissipates quickly, and leaves very little trail on glass.  Opaque even when the glass is held to light.  – 2.5/3

Flavor: Chocolately roasted malt flavor as a base with a good, full hit of tart cherry juice flavor from middle to finish.  The flavors are pretty well balanced as the tartness of the cherries balances out the bitterness of the roasted malt.  finishes quite smooth with some lingering cherry and roasted malt flavors left on the palate. – 14/20

Mouthfeel: Medium to full in body with a moderate level of carbonation.  Smooth on the palate and lightly creamy though it does have some roasted astringency. – 4/5

Overall Impressions: The flavors balance together more as I drink and it gets better as it warms even more.  The first sip was kind of a wow, but it became much better after that.  The tartness of the cherries is a nice characteristic as a sweet fruit would not have worked as well.  Might just make a nice ice cream or chocolate cake or something like that.  The Wife indicated that she never had anything like it.  – 7/10

Overall: B (36/50)

Bell's Brewery - Cherry Stout

If only because I have another STBC beer review to post I am going to pretend that this is a leap year and that today is still February.  That way I can still consider this part of and the conclusion to my themed month of evaluations.

The bottle indicates that this one is “A stout with great contention.”  I am not quite sure what that means, but I thought it was interesting enough to make note of it.

Now to close out STBC February ‘11 . . .

Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing Co. (Lakewood, NY)

Name: Crème Brûlée

Style: Imperial Sweet (Milk) Stout

ABV: 9.60% (on website) or 10.00% (on bottle)

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a snifter.

Aroma: Sugary sweet aroma with notes of vanilla and faint roasted grains.  A very full overall aroma. – 9/12

Appearance: Dark, dark brown (can see at edges when held to light).  Slight (maybe one finger), light brown head that dissipates very quickly leaving very little trail.  Opaque, though clear at the edge when held to light. – 3/3

Flavor: Initial sweetness and a hit of vanilla with some nice roasted malt flavors after that.  Good bitterness to it, having a black coffee-like quality from middle to finish.  Lingering notes of coffee and vanilla with some dryness at the finish.  – 14/20

Mouthfeel: Medium (toward full) body with a moderate to low level of carbonation.  Smooth with some roasted astringency at the finish. – 3/5

Overall Impressions: I was a little worried after aroma, but was pleasantly surprised by the flavor.  The candy-like sweetness is not necessarily my thing, but I kind of enjoyed it (more than expected).  The warmth seems to be well hidden with all of the sweetness to cover it up.  After the string of stouts, The Wife has now declared that STBC is her new favorite brewery. – 6/10

Overall: Very Good – 35/50

Southern Tier Brewing Co. - Crème Brûlée

Fear the cow

What I am learning with the stouts that I have tried so far from Southern Tier’s Blackwater Series is that the name tells you pretty much what you are in for.  There are no secrets when you pull the bottles from the shelf and I think that is a good thing.  This one was definitely not an exception.

Continuing on with this STBC February ‘11 . . .

Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing Co. (Lakewood, NY)

Name: Choklat

Style: Russian Imperial Stout (or perhaps more accurately an American Imperial Stout)

ABV: 11.00% (on both website and bottle)

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge (and pulled a little early to warm some) and served in a snifter.

Aroma: Deep, dark chocolate aroma with some sweetness and notes of fruit (cherries).  A hint of alcohol in there as well. – 9/12

Appearance: Appears black though is dark, dark brown at the edges when held to light.  One finger, frothy, thick, light brown color head with pretty good retention and leaving a solid trail.  Opaque though can see through edges when held to light. – 3/3

Flavor: Rich bittersweet chocolate flavor up front (and throughout) with some bitterness from middle to finish.  Not much depth overall (not necessarily a bad thing) with lingering chocolate flavor at finish.  Bitterness is a good thing and necessary to cut sweetness.  – 15/20

Mouthfeel: Full body with a moderate (to low) level of carbonation.  Fairly smooth with some astringency and some warmth at the finish. – 3/5

Overall Impressions: The flavor is certainly in the name.  Intensely flavored, rich, and a slow sipper for sure to the point where I kind of want to float some vanilla ice cream in it.  The flavors soften and the mouthfeel becomes more creamy as it warms.  The Wife absolutely loves it . . . as much as Mokah. – 7/10

Overall: Very Good – 37/50

Southern Tier Brewing Co. - Choklat

The close up