The beer pours like used motor oil, and it shares the same coloring. The brown head, too, might be the kind of bubbles that you get from pouring oil, and there isn't much left when the pour is over. The aroma is definitely not that of oil, though. Instead, it is light coffee, toasted oats, vanilla, and very, very dark chocolate.First sip is a powerhouse. It follows the smell with coffee, charred oats, dark chocolate, and even light cherries. Even the prodigious alcohol combined with all these flavors cannot escape the far-reaching sweetness that this beer has, but it is somehow offset with a bitter finish. Honestly, I'm not sure how they're doing this balancing act. The sip is somewhat overwhelming, but it is also pretty good.
Tip-in is very mild carbonation tingle with a rich, syrup texture and sweetness combined with dark chocolate and very light coffee. The middle is about as solid as chewing gravel with the thick, viscous liquid carrying earth, chocolate, more coffee, a sprinkling of cherries, and toasted oats. The finish is where the sweetness steps up with vanilla at its side and dispels the other flavors before an echo of bitterness can attempt to grasp at the trail-off.
Bottom Line: Perhaps sipping is best, but this beer stands on its own with the flavor per ounce ratio.
3.25/5
