Surly Coffee Bender

Brewed by Surly Brewing Company
Style: Brown Ale
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota USA

Creamy, sweet, dry, roasted, this beer really incorporates coffee in dynamic fashion. Coffee ice cream? Well done. Dark brown, some maroon tint, fluffy dense tan head. Medium roast in both coffee and barley, harmonious. Wow I’m loving this. Surly does great work. Strong coffee, not overdone, always there, never dominating. It works for me.

I’m a sucker for a good American brown ale and the coffee here gives this one an extra lift. Very rich in aroma for a 5.1% abv ale - almost tokay-like with liquid brown sugars, peppery alcohol and ground coffee beans. The palate is a minor flaw - a fraction too fizzy for these flavours IMO. Sweet, quite alcoholic with a good caffeine kick. Sourish finish. This would be a great way to start the day and I bet it’s a good pick-me-up after a night on the sauce. Another impressive Surly. (Ratebeer Sydney Xmas gathering under the harbour bridge, 2009. Beer courtesy of Oslo - thanks buddy.)

Dark cherries, mochacinno, toffee in the nose. Big espresso notes with caramel, but not in your face. The problem is the body isn’t big enough to support the beer and is just a bit weak. Taking this beer up to 6-7% would really help it out. Not bad.

Murky brown with reddish hues and a frothy large slowly dissipating brown head and some sheet lacing. Aroma of caramel, coffee, roasted malt, oatmeal and nuttiness. Taste of oatmeal, coffee, roasted malt and mild nuttiness. Creamy body with a touch of sourness and somewhat acidic as well. Mild bitterness as well on the finish. I prefer regular bender to this one.

16oz can HUGE thanks to WisconsinBeer! Pours a very dark shinny brown with a wonderfully fluffy frothy sticky light tan foamy head. Aroma of fresh coffee beans, nicely roasted, fairly bitter, some floral/citrusy hops match the sharpness of the roast and coffee, even brown sugar notes balance everything. Flavor follows aroma leaning more towards the hoppy side with lots of bitterness, floral and bright citrus, very bitter, medium brown sugar that isn’t excessively sweet. Some sour cream in the finish, with a dryer biter coffee aftertaste. A bit thin and watery in the body. A very nice beer. Definitely enjoying this more as it opens up and my tongue adjusts to the extreme bitterness.

16 ounce can courtesy of daknole. Thanks! Pours a dark brown color with a large brown head. Good head retention and lacing. Aroma of rich coffee along with sweet milk chocolate, cocoa and a bit of roast. Taste is coffee with cream, roasted malts, nuts and a fruity, faintly hoppy finish. Smooth, creamy, medium bodied. Very quaffable. Nice beer.

Disclaimer: I am not a coffee drinker. That said, I do like a lot of coffee beers, and this was no exception. 16 oz. can from shawnm213- thanks, Shawn! Pours a super dark brown, near black, with a resilient tan head. Coffee dominates the nose, unsurprisingly, with notes of roasted malts, vanilla, chocolate, nuts, and tobacco. The flavor follows suit- roasty, with coffee leading the way and some vanilla, tobacco, and chocolate notes. Medium bodied, and at first seems thin but then has a grittier mouthfeel later. Roasty finish. The look and smell of this are really nice, but as a non-coffee drinker, the flavor was too strong for me. My girlfriend is a coffee drinker and liked this a lot.

Poured from a can. Pours dark brown with very little head. Big coffee smell to it. Also has a big coffee taste with just a little bit of hops on the finish. I could drink this all day