Central 28 El Bulli

**Aroma:** “Strong roasted malt character with sweet creamy lactose coming through. Some chocolate and coffee notes provide a bit of malt complexity. Very pleasant chocolate milk up front, some black licorice, some mild earthiness and pepper. Very sweet on the nose in a classically lactose way.” **Flavor:** “Wonderful round chocolaty sweetness. If it were the right color I would swear I was drinking chocolate milk with a touch of coffee. Chocolate flavors are complex, from semisweet to cacao nib. Nice mild roast with a touch of bitterness to balance the sweetness. Very subtle dark fruit ester notes. Finish is balanced with a lingering roastiness.” **Overall:** “An amazing beer. A very tasty milk stout with a bit more pronounced roastiness for the style, but very well executed. Very sweet from start to finish with hints of chocolate and lactose.”

Aroma: Spicy coffee notes, hints of chocolate, vanilla, maybe some grassy hops. Medium vanilla adds a sweet note to the aroma, like a coffee candy.” Flavor: “The coffee is really subdued. Mocha with a half shot of vanilla syrup. Big malt, with caramel sweetness and toasty notes. There’s hints of raisin, too. Roast acidity (barely) keeps it from being cloying. The finish is quite boozy, paired with the semisweet finish it comes across a bit heavy.” Overall: “There are lots of nice elements to this beer. Consider it an effervescent porter for coffee people.”

**Aroma:** “The big oak and coffee notes play off each other well, with the chocolate and roast to support underneath. Dark cherry esters, oaky vanilla, oak char, whiskey vanilla, and tobacco, with a hint of maple.” **Flavor:** “The chewy woody oak is a bit overpowering. Low to medium vanilla presences reminds me of French oak, and it blends with the peach and cherry notes coming from the coffee and the beer. Some sweet cherry, sherry, dates, and marzipan. Very thin-bodied, more like an old ale than an imperial stout. Great caramel and toast malt character, and the roast and chocolate notes help to blend the flavors. Some fusel alcohols and whiskey, with tobacco and vanilla, as well as a mild hops flavor and bitterness.” **Overall:** “There’s a lightness to this beer that was unexpected, likely from the lighter stone fruit esters, but the body and vanilla help as well. The barrel character isn’t overdone and adds a nice complexity without drowning out or muddling the coffee stout underneath. However, the boozy-whiskey with the overpowering char from the barrel lose the beer element. It’s a nice beer, but it’s thin and tastes out of its style.”