Name: Coffee Stout (2020 Dark Matter Coffee)
Brewer: Perennial Artisan Ales (United States)
Style: Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer (Base Style: Imperial Stout)
ABV: 11.5%
Review Year: 2020
Coffee Stout (2020 Dark Matter Coffee) is an Imperial Stout brewed by Perennial Artisan Ales from Missouri. Two blends of coffee beans roasted by Dark Matter Coffee were selected for this beer: washed coffee from the Santa Petrona farm in El Salvador and beans from San Jeronimo Miramar farm in Guatemala. This Imperial Stout was also brewed with a malt bill comprised of various European specialty malts, loads of flaked oats, and was fermented using a Bavarian Wheat Yeast.
STYLE GUIDELINES
This beer is being evaluated as a Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer (30A) with the Imperial Stout (20C) as the base style in the context of the 2015 Beer Style Guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). The most current version of the guidelines can be found on the BJCP website.
TASTING NOTES
Deep brown with ruby highlights, almost black; thin mocha-colored head. The aroma was prominent and complex, a melting pot of dark fruit (prunes, wild cherries), decadent dark chocolate, and espresso coffee. This Imperial Stout lived up to the style with its full-body, moderately low carbonation, and chewy mouthfeel. A slightly oily and sticky afterfeel was also noted. The flavor profile recalled the aroma, melding roasty coffee (akin to espresso), dark malts with low chocolate and blueberry accents. Bitterness was moderately high enhancing the dark and roasty aspect of this beer. In contrast, sweetness was low. The aftertaste lingered with espresso, dark fruit, and licorice. No alcohol and harsh bitterness.
THE VERDICT
Coffee Stout (2020 Dark Matter Coffee) is a robust, espresso-like Imperial Stout with complementing dark fruit and chocolate characteristics. The balance between the bitterness and sweetness was spot-on, giving more emphasis on the coffee, malts, and dark fruit esters. This Imperial Stout was also fermented with Bavarian Wheat Yeast, which is not usual for the style. Despite this, no style inappropriate banana and clove impressions were present. Excellent.
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Perennial Artisan Ales
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