Belfast Bay McGoverns Oatmeal Stout

Brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company
Style: Sweet Stout
Portland, Maine USA

2009 Bottle. A disappointing oatmeal stout. Looks like a muddy homebrew with the sediment in the bottom of the bottle. Tastes watery with charcoal-like malt notes. Aroma of soy sauce and banana. OK, but not great...

Very dark and rich body with a one inch dark brown head that faded to a thin film quickly. Nice roasted malt aroma with some dark chocolate as well as cherry and light vanilla. Flavor is dry and roasted with some burnt malt coming out on the lightly hoppy finish. Very full flavored. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with active fizzy carbonation. Texture is more watery than anything else with a little chalkiness on the finish. Overall, a pretty good beer. Full of flavor, and a really nice surprise. It tastes more like a dry stout than an Oatmeal stout, but very tasty none the less.

Pours a dark brown from the 12oz. bottle: Light/medium cabonation, bitter/acidic sour throughout and into the finish. Not what I was expecting for a sweet, oatmeal stout. Usual stout flavors come through- burnt coffee beans and char, in particular, but "sweet" doesn’t come to mind. Okay, Faint notes of cherry and chocolate water somewhere in the mix. Perhaps I had a bad batch. Drinkability: Dry and bland. Rebuy: With the intention to rerate. #169 on 10282009, DG.

pours a deep brown/black with a medium mocha colored head. aroma has light roast caramel with hints of nuts and coffee. flavor is mild coffee up front with a very burnt finish and aftertaste. mouthfeel is slightly lively and creamy with a lingering burnt finish that lasts quite a while. not too bad but it is a bit one dimensional.

Tap. Poured midnight black with a thin off white head. Mostly coffee and roasted malt nose. This one is a bit thin. The front is almost non existent it’s got some sweetness and some roasted flavors but something is a bit off In the flavor. Some decent carbonation and a pretty good finish saves this from being a bust.

Bottle. Medium sized fizzy light brown head, fair amount of lacing, mostly opaque dark brown body and very little visible carbonation. The aroma was chocolate, roasty and hop notes. The flavor was chocolate, bitter, burnt/charred tasting, and a dry finish. Smooth mouthfeel and medium bodied. An easy to drink Sweet Stout. Not a whole lot going on with this beer. It is just a nice beer to drink for the style.

Black with good, foamy brown head / Muted roast barley nose / Light to medium body, thin and somewhat tart and acidic, with decent dry finish / Light, simple flavors of roast barley and coffee / Below average.

Thin and not good describes this stout. Too roasty, not enough body. Tastes more like a mediocre dry stout to me. Meh.