Mad River Brewing Co -- Steelhead Extra Stout

 

Mad River Brewing Co.'s Steelhead Extra Stout is, "a black opaque ale with rich creamy roasted malt character and a very mild hop compliment.  Dessert beer."

 6.5% ABV

Review:

It is 7:48am and I'm already daydreaming about having a Steelhead Extra Stout tonight.
This ale pours BLACK! There are not even any highlights... just infinite darkness. The head pours to 3/8" and stands for about 2 minutes before settling into a ring around the edge of the glass. The aroma is very complex with hints of coffee, vanilla, plum, roasted chocolate, and a hint of cinnamon. When cold, the flavor starts with a cherry cola note and fades to chocolate covered currants. The hop character is light and grassy and only comes into play late but lingers on the tongue after swallowing. The mouthfeel is fairly effervescent and despite the obvious amount of malts used, does not feel thick or syrupy.

(Side Note: Steelhead Brewing uses the original mash tun that Sierra Nevada brewing Co. started with. That means that this beer has been filtered through the thousands of holes that Ken Grossman drilled by hand in the false bottom.)

Overall Impression: 

For something this black, the expectation might be to have the roast dominate the palate. Not so with this ale. Instead, in the balance between roasty character and sweetness, the sweetness from the caramel/crystal and specialty malts slightly beats out the roasted backbone. This is not necessarily a bad thing, and indeed, this tipping of the scales was the intended effect that the brewmaster was looking for in formulating this "dessert beer."
If you're looking for a roast forward, bitter, coffee tasting ale, this isn't it.
If you are looking for a complex, lovely, slightly sweet stout, this is for you.

I plan to take the brewery's advice and make a stout and vanilla ice cream float tonight!

Grade: A-

Barrel Man Says,

"they should barrel age this."

(bottle purchased at Tamura's)