Day drinking an 18% beer yesterday was pretty fun...however, it made for a quick night after enjoying a few more selections. Let's take things down just a few notches today before the annual Christmas Eve festivities commence around 5PM this evening. I can enjoy this since we're just going up the road.
In 2015 I found a beer that was found all over my social media feeds in Stone Brewing Company's winner of the 2014 Stone Homebrew Competition winner, Xocoveza. Thanks to Chris Banker for brewing a "flavorful milk stout brewed with cocoa, coffee and spices to mimic the flavors of Mexican hot chocolate." I decided to give it a whirl because it sounded pretty awesome. Turns out that it was!
I snagged a case last year at W & S in Northumberland and it lasted me until this year. I believe that I still have a few bottles left from that case somehow.
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| Now I'm curious and need to check... |
Yes! I still have 6 bottles leftover and ready to enjoy!
The genius brewers at Stone decided to take some Xocoveza and throw it into some American Oak Kentucky Bourbon Barrels for 6 months and see what happens. I think it's pretty safe to say that it definitely can't hurt anything. This 9.6% Mocha Stout is something that once brewed, I don't think could be screwed up at all.
A black as night beer emerged from the 500ml bottle that was corked and caged. I actually had to bust out the wine bottle opener because that sucker was not going to make its way out easily. Aromas of coffee, dark chocolate, cinnamon, and spicy peppers emanate from my splinter glass with just a touch of bourbon sweetness. Sweet chocolate malts touch my tongue first with a smooth, velvety chocolate cocoa next combined with some vanilla notes. The spicy peppers can be found at the end, but they're much more mellow than I remember the "regular" version of this beer to be. There is a slight hint again of the sweet bourbon in there that takes a backseat to the other flavors, which I'm perfectly alright with. The lactose gives it some sweetness as well, and the flaked oats give it a near-oatmeal stout body.
The flavors linger very nicely on the palate for a long-lasting and enjoyable drinking session with this companion today. The cellar notes describe some charred oak and toffee flavors, which I can note now that someone else has pointed it out to me.
All things considered, I'm glad I splurged a tad on this via my Tavour order. I know, I know, you probably won't be able to actually find this, but if you do happen to run across ANY variant of Stone Xocoveza, and you enjoy a stout beer, you'll be glad you did. I'll rate this one the same as the Xocoveza that is not aged in bourbon barrels at a 4.75 out of 5 because it's equally as good in my humble opinion. Either one is a great choice if you've never had it! Enjoy and Merry Christmas Eve!!!
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| Don't mention it! |
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