Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Courtesy of after4ever and shared with after4ever and bitbucket. Pours dark brown to black with mocha head and decent lacing. The aroma is big with a bag full of ground Folgers’s coffee beans with some faint roasted malts hidden behind. The taste, how is this not coffee?, it looks like coffee, it smells like coffee and it tastes like coffee. Midway a faint roasted to burnt maltiness shines through the coffee. It finsishes very coffee like. It’s more coffee than stout with no sense of the ABV.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

33cl bottle at Tuulelohe (Tallinn Airport). Pours close to pitch black with a modest, beige head. Aroma of roasted malt, roasted coffee, chocolate, dark fruits and hints of spices. Sweet, flavourful and desserty. Lovely coffee stout, well balanced and tasty. Quite delicious!

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 9

Bottle at home, black beer, small head. Aroma is roast, coffee, malt, chocolate, light fruit. Taste is the same, roast, coffee, liquorice, chocolate, sweet. Nice one

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Clear black, dark brown lacing foam head. Great bitter coffee aroma and taste. Chocolate notes. A fine beer, could do some more aroma still. (Velp 201706)

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 8

Pours a good size frothy brownish head and has a pitch black appearance, no highlights whatsoever. Lacing is fairly weak though. Aromas of dark roasted malts, coffee and chocolate. Flavours are mainly coffee and chocolate, some strong notes of the roasted malt, toffee and nutty hints as well. Also some cocoa notes in the finish. Has a smooth and silky mouthfeel, creamy as well. Just the right bitterness on the palate. Great retention. Full bodied. Very good.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

330ml bottle
7.0% ABV (as written on bottle)
Royal Bank Plaza LCBO Outlet (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
The beer pours a solid black colour with a generous light brown creamy head which lasts, The aroma is roasted malt, coffee, dark chocolate. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with average carbonation. The flavour is quite sweet, milk chocolate, coffee, with a bitter finish.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

Pours a black colour with a thick beige head. Aroma of rich espresso coffee with some vanilla notes. Rich flavour of espresso, roasted malts, chocolate, vanilla and some bitter hops in the background which I enjoyed. Light vegetable notes. Full bodied, soft carbonation and a long finish with some robustness and coffee.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Perhaps I've wrecked my palate with Imperial Stouts, but the mouthfeel on this one seems weak. While I do get a do get a mild coffee flavor first, it is called Espresso Stout so I guess I was expecting a bit more punch on mouth and especially flavor. It's good and it's highly drinkable, but I am a bit surprised by the mostly raving reviews. Now back to your regular programming...

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 10 | Mouthfeel: 10 | Flavor: 10 | Overall: 10

I LOVED this beer. I tried the Hitachino Weizen prior to this brew and enjoyed that one as well. Very unique beer flavors! The Espresso Stout had a beautiful black brown color. It looked dreamy in a stemmed pilsner glass and was so creamy! The espresso definitely was the predominate flavor. Vanilla and chocolate accompanied the star of the hour and as a trio, they made a good brood! Would definitely order this beer again and any of the Kiuchi Brewery brews nestled in the Hitachino Nest. A winner! Visit this Brewery's website: http://hitachinonest.com/ It is so cool!

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

330ml bottle -

What a way to start out 2013!!! What an amazing stout, full of complexity and showcasing a knowledge of brewing greatness. Deep espresso aroma, scorched dark chocolate, black licorice, and a kiss of alcohol. Opaque black body, a 4-finger thick creamy head, coating the glass...thick...murky...ominous...perfect. The flavor of this this beauty keeps giving and giving. Waves of rich mocha, fresh cream, a bit of soy/meat marinade, a touch smoky, a bit of buttery toffee...amazing. The balance of coffee/chocolate is stunning. What a great beer.