I’m on a little Sierra Nevada trip here for a variety of reasons: awesome bottles to fill with homebrew, it’s an amazing brewery and it’s on sale at Binny’s (my local liquor store). This was actually my very last bottle of the six pack and it took a lot of self-control to not down it earlier without careful review, yay new FAVORITE!

Brewery Home: Chico, CA

Serving Style: 12 oz bottle into pint glass

Beer Style: American Stout

Appearance: Pours with a dirty tan head that is strong enough to stick around for a while. Excellent lacing on my glass. Body is black to dark mahogany – amber around the very edges while holding it up to the light – but not the ‘motor oil’ thickness that we pour often around these parts. The head coated my glass all the way down, awesome!

Aroma: Full bodied malts with a heavy emphasis on the chocolate notes, all framed lightly by delicate hops. It is roasted (maybe some coffee too?) around the ‘edges’ but it reminds me most strikingly of rich dark or semisweet chocolate.

Taste: Rich and creamy mouthfeel…wow…that is satisfying. I get a nice chocolate sweetness on the front end of a sip that moves smoothly into a wonderful hoppy/roasted malt (I think I can definitely taste Cascade hops in the end…thank you homebrewing!) that finishes with just the right amount of dryness. Hints of roasted coffee beans come through strongly in later sips. Damn, I can’t get over that mouthfeel! It’s so perfect! This beer won’t blow your brains out the back of your skull, but you’ll be so happy when it’s smooth character makes sweet, sweet love to your tongue.

ABV: 5.8% Really?! Danger!

Drink one or all?: All six. Damn! Super tasty.

Cost: $8/sixer

Overall: 18+/20 It’s not the most interesting stout ever, but it could be the most sessionable. FAVORITE.