One of my awesome friends brought me this beer when I was in North Dakota last month - Surly Brewing's Tiramisu Funeral Bar, a Dessert Stout brewed with coffee, vanilla bean, cocoa, lactose and molasses. One thing I didn't know about this beer until I took a sip is that it's 10.2% ABV.. eep! I took a sip expecting this to be 6.5% tops so it hit me hard, quickly!
Appearance: A murky dark brown like a liquid chocolate cake in a glass. The head is a yellowish/burnt caramel - fairly thick yet gradually diminishes to a thin layer near the side of the glass, minimal lacing on the glass.
Aroma: Dessert in a can, really does smell like tiramisu, from the memories of the two times in my entire life I've ever had tiramisu. There's an incredibly heavy booziness in this beer right from the beginning that gives off a bit of a whisky-like burn to it. There's notes of vanilla, cocoa, a bit of cream, and a bit of burnt caramel/molasses at the end. It's quite sweet and definitely has a dessert in a can vibe to it still.
Taste: Well as I said at the beginning, I didn't expect this to be 10.2% ABV so this beer hit me by surprise - this one has a heavy amount of booziness with notes of vanilla, cocoa, a bit of a Bourbon-like burn, a bit of a creaminess, burnt caramel and a hint of a bite of molasses at the end. Very sweet but surprisingly not anywhere near as thick and heavy as many Imperial Dessert Stouts I've had in the past. There's also a hint of a roasted malt profile to it to give it a hint of a coffee like presence to it - this is what I'm mostly getting for the beer's aftertaste. Oh, there's also a hint of a peppery spiciness that tingles once in a while.
Overall Thoughts: This is exactly what I want in a Dessert Stout. This is something that would be insanely appreciative in a couple months time when the long, cold, prairie winters hit. Incredibly boozy but also has a serious dessert in a can vibe to it. Very sweet, vanilla & cocoa-y, pretty heavy on the stomach but loving every sip!
https://surlybrewing.com/beer/tiramisu-funeral-bar/
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