Brewery: Kiuchi Brewery (Japan)
7.50% ABV
Poured from a stubby 11.2 oz bottle into a pint glass.
Appearance: The color is black as sin with a red tint. Even a careful pour brings an explosion of foam. A heavy, tan head that consumes half the glass. A lacing that will force you to give your glass a good washing after.
Smell: Some people pick up a sourness in the scent. It exists, but it’s on the back end. Burnt chocolate and vanilla come through immediately. More so than the espresso or coffee. There is even a fruityness hidden somewhere between the chocolate and toasted malts. They have put together a very odd combination of scents and it is definitely one of the most pleasing beers I have smelled recently.
Taste: While the scent of coffee is lower on the smell list, after tasting you will find that it lives up to it’s name and then some. The coffee flavor is fantastic, and is accompanied by a long aftertaste of the same. Your tongue tells you that your nose isn’t a liar. All scents are easily picked up in the tasting, although in a different order. Roasted malts, almost burnt, team up with a bittersweet chocolate to start the adventure. A recognizable earthy, fig-like note put together with the vanilla and chocolate malts really keeps the strength and bitterness of the coffee down to a very manageable and drinkable level. The alcohol percentage is disguised well.
Mouthfeel: Very thick. Very creamy. Syrup-like. You feel every bit and every bubble from the edge of the glass to the bottom of your throat.
Drinkability: Do you like beer? Do you like coffee? If you answered yes to both, you have found a winner here. I am a fan of the style, and won’t go crazy with any top placement on the list of coffee stouts out there, but Kiuchi has done Japan proud. Their Espresso Stout has certainly made it’s way in my rotation.
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