Rare Bird brewery, located on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore in Guysbrough, is one of Nova Scotia’s newest breweies, but is already receiving rave reviews. Full Steam Stout is a dark, roasty coffee stout – one of their regular offerings made with Authentic Seacoast (the maker of Rare Bird) Full Steam coffee.

From the brewery: “Here’s a hearty brew built for the Authentic Seacoast. Take our nicely hopped East Coast Stout with notes of licorice, chocolate and roasted malt, add our freshly roasted certified organic, fair trade Full Steam Coffee to the brewing process and you have a richly flavoured, creamy coffee stout that pours black as a starless night, capturing the unique seacoast spirit of the Maritimes. “

And what did I think?

Appearance: As a stout should be, this is a pretty dark beer – dark with ruby highlights when put up to the light. Nearly opaque, but not quite.

Aroma: The aroma is somewhat mineraly. There is also some fruity and dark roast (coffee and dark chocolate) aromas coming through.

Taste: This first thing that is apparent are the alcohol notes. At 7% this is a strong beer and those notes come through, but fade as the beer warms (probably best drank at an elevated temperature). There is a bit of fruitiness and some hops. Not as roasty or as much dark roast/coffee character as would be expected. There is also a slight licorice flavour that appears after the second or third sip.

Mouthfeel: The body is lighter than it looks – light to medium body. Light to medium carbonation.

Overall: Not too bad. Light and easy to drink – not heavy on the palate. Better as it warms, I would place this one on the counter for a bit and not drink it right from the fridge. Probably would be a great one to age for a few months or years. Also, theres a nice buzz from that hit of coffee.

75/100

drinknbrew.com
Like us in Facebook, follow us in Twitter and Instagram, and be our friend on Untappd.