Bar Harbor Cadillac Mountain Stout

Brewed by Bar Harbor Brewing Company (Atlantic Brewing Company)
Style: Dry Stout
Bar Harbor, Maine USA

I did a side by side tasting of this beer. The new mass produced 12 oz version and the 22 oz hand crafted version. I rated the 22 oz version. The version that made this stout popular.

12 oz

Bottle pours pitch black with tan head. Has 1 dimensional aroma featuring a slight malt base. Has a medium light body. Its a bit thin for a stout. Flavor is somewhat hoppy and has malt flavor that is somewhat boring. Overall this version is just an ok brew. Not much to talk about really. This version would get a rating no more than a 3.1 or 3.2

22 oz

Bottle pours pitch black with thick tan head. Has a wonderful aroma of sweet roasted malts and chocolate. Very complex. Has a medium body and is much fuller compared to the 12 oz version. Flavor is smooth and roasty. Dark malts, chocolate, caramel, coffee, toffee, and just tasty goodness. Overall, this is one of the best dry stouts I’ve tried. I’m glad I got to taste the mass produced version and the version that made this such a popular stout. Its truely world class.

Bottle. Pours black with a nice two finger tan head that left good lacing. Aroma of roasted malts, chocolate and light coffee. Flavor was smooth with dark roasted malts, dark chocolate, mild coffee and a hint of dark fruit with a medium body and a light bitterness. Excellent dry stout.

03 Bottle shared by Ross. Poured black with a tan head that left good lacing. Head settles but renews with a twirl of the glass. Aroma of chocolate, molasses and a slight roast. The flavor had the same chocolate and molasses come out with a mix of coffee, more pronounced roast and hints of hops. Medium body with a slightly fizzy carbonation. Still very decent for it’s age.

Bottle - Poured a very dark black/brown in color with a thin dark tan head that faded quickly. Aroma is slightly sweet and fruity with a strong character of coffee, dark roasted malts and a hint of chocolate. Thinner than I expected. A good stout, but not one of the best

Newer 22oz bottle conditioned version. Yes I heard all the hype leading up to this tasting, but it definitely delivered. People always comment this beats Guiness! Not even close, this makes Guiness taste like tepid, watered down coffee. Just phenomenal.

12oz Geary brewed bottle. I’ve seen lots of hype for this stuff over the years and have been craving a good stout for a few weeks now... this rating may be biased, I’m trying my damndest not to believe the hype, not necessarily trying to trash it, but trying not to love it because all the cool kids do. Anyway, yeah, it’s black, it’s a stout. Tan foam that fades down to a thin ring. Mildly oily nose with some roasted notes. Flavor is just damn nice, some mild herbal hoppiness buried underneath the spot on malts. Perfect palate for the flavor, not quite sure how else to describe that.

2003 bottle courtesy of Ross. We thought this one would be a oxidation bomb, and this is surprisingly still good. Pours a deep brown with some reddish hues, and a beige head. Aroma is not very inviting, sort of like wet cardboard. Medium bodied with a slightly thin texture. Flavor of cocoa, nuts, and dark roasted malts. The hops have faded, bringing forth more sweetness on the palate. This is actually still drinkable and decent, even though it probably tastes totally different fresh.

Oxidationfest Tasting at illinsmittys curtesy of ross. "It’s better than ass!" ’03-’04. Extremely Dark brown, wth light brown head. Nose of sweet cocoa and malt. Medium Thin body. Impressive.