homages?

Yes, another stout to enjoy, although it still seems like summer. Next week will be better, but will it last? We can only wait and see. Anyway, my glorious stout, my precious pastry, Brewed Velvet Back To Black. Is the ghost of Amy Winehouse possessing it? Doesn’t seem like it. Maybe a David Lynch character is lurking around somewhere. This is a healthy 10-percenter, imperial pastry stout no less. Drunken Bros. are living up to their name this time.

It looks like there’s some sediment sitting on top of the beer in the can, since it isn’t foam, and the beer pours into the glass looking “dirty”. It cleans itself up pretty well and with some speed, although the foam has some oddly huge bubbles in it. The aroma leans heavily into mocha, so the chocolate and coffee are coming through quite strongly. The flavor, on the other hand, is a trumpeting blast of vanilla. It’s something like those chewy vanilla toffees that are a lot like Tootsie Rolls, but nicer. Like many pastry stouts, it ends up being something more akin to a Starbucks special than what you expect in your favorite alcohol dispensary, but there are evenings when that’s what you’re looking for. It gains weight as it sits, even while it stays cool, although it doesn’t get too syrupy or leave any amount of sludge behind it. The second pour gives a more unruly head, which puffs up unexpectedly and lets a few drips roll over the edge. Tears of a chocolate angel. It now seems a lot like a beer float, although the ice cream seems to have melted into it. It’s quite the sipping beer, and for its strength it doesn’t leave you reeling, at least if you take your time with it. Don’t forget that it is not actually an ice cream float.

Supplier: La Buena Cerveza
Price: €7.90