In the mood for both some coffee and some beer at just after 2:00 pm today, it was decided to try the bottle of Hinterland Luna Coffee Stout that was sitting in the garage.
The big pint bottle was brewed and bottled in Green Bay, Wisconsin the ale is labeled as a "malt beverage with coffee added". The large frosted mug was taken from the freezer and the bottle cap was removed. The malt beverage was likely still to cold to pour, being out in the frozen garage. There was little head on this stout that I attribute to the cold more then anything else. It poured dark and thick with no head unfortunately (most likely no fault of its own).
Deciding to let the brew warm a little to room temperature only lasted a few minutes after sniffing the contents a few times. The stout had little fragrance (again probably because it was still cold), but there was a distinct sweet syrupy note that would waft through the nostrils at times.
The glass is thick and as black as any stout I have ever seen in a clear glass. There doesn't appear to be much carbonation, but it is difficult to notice if this is regular or if it is the result of a cold black beer being poured into a frozen mug.
A few sips and swish around the palate and some very rich flavors form. The ale is cold and smooth. The first flavor to appear is just sweet, like a drop of maple syrup. Not as sweet as the smell suggests, but sweet none the less. As the drink rolls back over the tongue, the coffee flavor become more prominent. It is a bold roasted coffee flavor that borders on burnt. Then the bitter which lingers. It is a combination of bitter that is a cross between bitter coffee and bitter hops.
Overall the brew has some great flavors, but it really is nothing that makes it stand out significantly from any other stout. It might be interesting to try in a black and tan (which I think I am going to do with the 6-8 ounces I have left).
Hinterland Luna Coffee Stout with Mr. Beer home brewed Pale Ale A side note about the Black and Tan. The Stout was mixed with some home made pale ale and it was pretty good. The mixture was sweet, but others that tried it thought it was too bitter. The bitterness was lost on me.
