Review – Southern Tier Iniquity

From Southern Tier : 9.0% ABV ,21° plato ,2-row pale malt ,debittered black malt ,kettle hops: chinook, cascade
hop back: willamette, dry hops: cascade, centennial.

Appearance: Dark, dark reddish-brown. Not quite stout-like. An inch of grayish-brown head with slightly larger bubbles than you’d see on a stout. Little to moderate lacing.

Smell: Like someone mixed an IPA with a coffee stout. There are the typical pine and citrus from the cascade hops, but it’s drier and there’s an overlaying espresso aroma.

Taste: Bittersweet, like dark chocolate (in fact there are very faint hints of chocolate). Starts off with a sweetness that reminds me of meringue candies. The chinook hops come through on the finish for a lasting, pleasant bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Creamy and rich with moderate carbonation.

Drinkability: This is now my second-favorite offering from Southern Tier (right behind the Creme Brulee Stout). I love the juxtaposition of the sweet and bitter tones in this beer. If the Creme Brulee is “dessert in a bottle,” then this is dessert in a bottle for dark chocolate and coffee lovers. At 9%, it’s perfect for sipping it slowly after a nice meal. I’d pair it with a light-to-medium-bodied cigar as it could be overwhelmed by too heavy of a smoke.