Samuel Adams Nitro Coffee Stout
What the brewers say
“Noted by a strikingly vigorous cascade and thick foam head, nitro beers are known for their rich and smooth texture. With Nitro Project, we explored recipes that held the integrity of the style while being gassed with nitrogen. The result, in our humble opinion, is awesome.”
What our panel thought
Aroma: “Creamy aroma with notes of coffee, some roast, chocolate, and a little vanilla. The medium-high malt presence is balanced by the soft and delicate sweetness. Sweet cherry emerges as it warms.”
Flavor: “The nitrogen lends some vanilla milk sweetness throughout the taste, giving this beer a creamy mouthfeel and a medium body. The lightly roasted coffee is present, but the sweet chocolate dominates and carries through the finish. Really nice cherry esters give this beer an entertaining complexity.”
Overall: “It’s very sweet, and while the creaminess is enjoyable, a bit of roast would have balanced it more. The coffee aroma was intensely roasty, but the flavor was more understated. The nitro gives it a great creamy texture, and the dark cherry and fruit notes make this beer very interesting.”