Hardywood Park Craft Brewery Black Forest Cassowary
What the brewers say
The nose is dominated by aromas of baker’s chocolate and vanilla bean while re-fermentation on black cher-ries gives the beer a silky texture reminiscent of a Black Forest cake.
What our panel thought
A rich velvety stout with layers of chocolate, roast complexity. The cherries add a hint of tartness and a dark-fruit character that pairs well with the vanilla, dark chocolate, and roast character. Sweet but not overly cloy-ing. Good lingering roast to add bitterness on the finish, along with some pleasantly warming alcohol notes.
What our editors thought
A touch of old-style imperial stout bitterness on the nose meters out the potential excess of the other ingre-dients, while on the sip the cherry and coconut push forward into pure dessert territory. It’s rich and syrupy on the sip with a lingering sweet finish.