Nickel Brook Brewing Co. Cursed Double Divine – American Double / Imperial Stout at 8.5% ABV (C$5.89 at Collective, 341 ml, packaged on 21-Jan-2021, acquired 23-Apr-2021, reviewed 8-May-2021)
Appearance: clear deep brown with two fat fingers of rocky beige head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: raspberries, dark chocolate, dark fruit, coffee. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter, mild tart. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body dropping off slightly thin, moderate carbonation, moderate bitter lightly tart mildly warming finish. (4/5)
It’s not typical of my experience for the list of malts to be longer than that of the hops, but that’s the case here: Pale Ale, Chocolate, Crystal, Dark Chocolate, Flaked Wheat, Roasted Barley, Flaked Barley, Chocolate Wheat, Flaked Oats, and Carafa Special III; compared with German Magnum, Nugget, and Centennial. However, for all that, the malts don’t really carry the day here. Bright jammy raspberries dominate on the front end, but it’s not as sweet as might be expected. Like its Blessed colleague, though, it smells a bit better than it tastes. On the up side, the elevated ABV is very well integrated and doesn’t intrude at all. (15/20)
7.5/10 ryansbooze.com #ryansbooze
