Left Hand Brewing Milk Stout Nitro. 6% abv. 25 IBU. Pitch black with two finger of dense mocha head, like melted ice cream. Outstanding retention and superb lacing that barely moves down the glass. Nose of vanilla, black coffee, roasted malt.

Front taste is roasted malt, milk chocolate, toffee, sweet cream. Aftertaste is bittersweet dark chocolate, ground coffee, mild herbal hops in the back. Full body. Mouthfeel is cool, thick, rich, creamy, smooth.

This is an outstanding milk stout, one of the best examples I've had in years. In terms of body, taste, and overall impression, it ranks up there with the legendary Mackeson Triple XXX Stout, one of my all-time favorite beers. The nitro treatment fits this big sweet stout, its tall flavors balanced together perfectly.

I've been homebrewing for 20 years, and when I seek a good milk stout, Left Hand comes up a lot as a modern benchmark for the category. I can now see why. Strongly recommended.

From the brewery:

"Super smooth with soft roastiness and mocha flavors. Taking America Back. Dark & delicious, America’s great milk stout will change your perception about what a stout can be. Pouring hard out of the bottle [can], Milk Stout Nitro cascades beautifully, building a tight, thick head like hard whipped cream. Milk Stout Nitro is also good to go from the can with widget inside technology, or like a pro in a glass. The aroma is of brown sugar and vanilla cream, with hints of roasted coffee. The pillowy head coats your upper lip and its creaminess entices your palate. Initial roasty, mocha flavors rise up, with slight hop & roast bitterness in the finish. The rest is pure bliss of milk chocolate fullness."

[source: lefthandbrewing.com]

Modern Times 'City of the Dead' Nitro Stout with Cocoa Nibs, Almonds, and Sea Salt. 7.5% abv. 30 IBU. Dense black with a pinkie finger of beige, rich, foamy head. Outstanding retention that is typical of nitro beers, and superb thick lacing like melted ice cream. 

Nose of ground coffee, dark chocolate, with subtle bourbon notes emerging as the temp rises. Front taste of brewed coffee, bittersweet cocoa, vanilla, light wood notes on the back end. Aftertaste is dark chocolate, burnt caramel, faint caramel, mild herbal expression. Medium-full body. Mouthfeel is warm, thick, creamy, a touch astringent.

This is a very good coffee beer that is a tad shy of excellence. The chocolate and coffee flavors are prominent throughout, but the promised almonds and sea salt are absent, with the bourbon taste nearly so. This beer benefits from 10 minutes in the glass, with buried aromas and flavors standing taller as the temp rises to room. Given enough time to warm, it steps forward tasting more like a milk stout than anything else.

Still, even with time on the table, with all its cards laid out, the commendable flavor profile leaves me wanting more, if only because I've had so many superior similar beers. Based on its description, which includes almonds, sea salt, and bourbon barrel aged coffee beans (the coffee is BBA, not the beer itself), this beer clearly aimed high - but narrowly missed its mark. Still, it's surely a good brew to try, particularly if you enjoy coffee beers. Recommended.

From the brewery:

"This groundbreaking export stout is brewed with house-roasted, bourbon barrel-aged coffee. Yup, bourbon barrel-aged coffee. This unique process imbues our coffee with the incredible flavor and aroma of a freshly emptied bourbon barrel, which carries over magnificently into this rich, chewy beer. Unlike any other beer in the world, City of the Dead is immensely flavorful and unforgettably delicious."

[source: moderntimesbeer.com]

Oskar Blues Brewing 'Old Chub' Nitro Scotch Ale. 8% abv. Big nitrogenated can beer. Strong nose of caramel. Rich clingy head as normal with nitro brews. Heavy malty taste, nutty, toffee, hop flavor on the front. Aftertaste is warm sugar, lingering hops. Full body. Sweet sticky mouthfeel.

This is one of those decadent Scotch Ales, kinda like a dessert beer, made more so by the creamy nitro head. A solid example of its category. The sweet malty profile is a little too dominant for my taste. Still, it was a taste that was instantly memorable, a nice treat that I would try again. Highly recommended.

From the brewery:

"This jaw-dropping Scottish strong ale is brewed with bodacious amounts of malted barley and specialty grains, and a dash of beechwood-smoked malt. Old Chub features semi-sweet flavors of cocoa and coffee, and a wee-bit of smoke. A head-turning treat for malt heads and folks who think they don’t dig dark beer."

Enjoying my Old Chub at Peeve's Pubic House