Aroma: “Faint spice and soft chocolate with a pleasant roasted background. Slight grassy hops and a hint of tartness brighten it up a bit, though there’s a faint hint of sour milk.”

Flavor: “Dark chocolate with a very roasty, almost astringent finish accentuated by the hops. The vanilla adds nice underlying spice but isn’t particularly strong. Finish is smooth and creamy, with lingering dry coffee and hops bitterness.”

Overall: “It’s nice to taste a beer with restrained adjuncts. In this case, the vanilla adds some complexity throughout but isn’t a dominant characteristic. The underlying stout is balanced toward the bitter side, but that comes across well in this case and leaves a dryer impression where the dark roast notes linger on the tongue.”