Friday, January 08, 2010

SOUTHERN TIER’s “CRÈME BRULEE STOUT”

Sure, I expected this to be a “dessert beer”, but perhaps I wasn’t prepared for the dessertiest dessert beer in dessertland. Man, SOUTHERN TIER’s “CRÈME BRULEE STOUT” is a sweet, creamy stout that tastes like a big fat cake – and OBTW (“oh by the way”), it’s really, really delicious. This was my New Year’s Eve beer, and came into my possession courtesy of Aaron over at The Vice Blog in our recent bomber-for-bomber exchange.

The first thing you’re looking for in a beer of this ilk is the whole, “well is it really gonna taste like crème brulee or just some sickeningly sweet beer”? I’m here to report that from the first fragrant whiff, which smells like vanilla and cream, you’re in for a pretty special glass or two of beer. It really invents a new category for itself: "Cake beer". It is balanced well and even feels a little liquor-like at times, but I don’t think the ABV is all that high. Wait, let’s check the internet and see. Shut my mouth – it’s 9.2%! CRÈME BRULEE STOUT pours with no head and is medium bodied, with very mild hops tingling in the distant background. Mine even had lots of sediment in it, just the way the Belgians do it. This was about perfect for kissing off the decade and I’m dang glad I drank one. I hope you get to as well. 8/10.

5 comments:

J.Rhode said...

Close to sickeningly sweet though. Felt like I was drinking butterscotch.

The Hop Back said...

Southern Tier has their act together when it comes to making beer taste incredibly like what's written on the bottle. I recently had their "Choklat Stout", like drinking liquid and carbonated chocolate. That one is 11% ABV and hides it extremely well. And not long ago I tried their "Pumpking" which was truly Pumpkin Pie in a glass.

The Choklat stout was my first true visit to dessertland, I'll have to make a trip back with this Créme Brulee you speak of.

Derrick Peterman said...

I love the way they basically reconstruct a creme brulee within a beer. I've never had a beer from Southern Tier that was worse than "excellent". I also recommend their Mokah if you like these sort of dessert like Imperial Stouts.

Lost said...

Reviewed this beer during the past summer. This stuff is truly nectar of the Gods!

Thinking of picking some more up soon.

-Lost

HomeBrewHawk said...

I like sweet stouts, so I don't think it's too sweet, but I know plenty of people who do. The aroma is amazing. Dessert in a bottle.