Viking Brewing Hot Chocolate

Brewed by Viking Brewing Company
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Dallas, Wisconsin USA

Had this at the Great Lakes Beer Fest. I was very excited to try this since I’m a big fan of two of Viking’s dark beers. Upon first sip I almost gagged, all I could taste was spiciness and hops. The next beer I drank after that (different beer, different brewery) still had the taste of this lingering. Will not try again!

Bottle from Ryan. THis one was really interesting, as I had no idea what this would taste like or if it would even be better than a drain pour. I actually kinda liked it. Chocolate is pretty heavy and thats all I can get from the smell and usually the taste except right at the end a little bit of head comes through. This is a simple beer - chocolate and cayenne, but it actually works well. I enjoyed it, even though it is rated low as hell.

So Brett Favre might come out of retirement yet again, this time to play for the Vikings. As a Packer fane, they should make him drink this stuff before games. It looks like a cesspool in the darn glass. Dark brown with chunks of shit floating everywhere. This poor excuse for a head is tan, airy and gone faster than Nick Collins on a pick six in the metrodome. Aroma of cocoa and cayenne pepper, some sweetness comes through but the bite on that spice overpowers everything. The taste is of cayenne pepper, like I just liked the lid on the spice jar. With every single sip. Sure there’s some malt mixed in, but this one just seems wrong. There’s no way I could finish it, and as I type this some 20 hours later, the cayenne is still evident and I’m ruing the day I cracked that thing open. It’s an interesting idea, but it’s done all wrong.

Pours pitch black with small dark head that fades quickly to nothing. Seems like a pretty thick pour. Aroma has chocolate, toffee, and coffee. There is also something else kinda musty that I can’t quite put my finger on. The flavor includes dark chocolate up front followed by some sweetness and finishes up with the spicy pepper notes. The heat builds for a few seconds after drinking and builds more when taking a few drinks in succession. The aftertaste is interesting if nothing else, with cocoa and spice. The mouthfeel is thinner than expected. I think they are adding some creativity to a mediocre chocolate stout.

12oz bottle. Brown-black color, opaque. Fluffy beige head that fades away. The aroma is very chocolaty, with maybe just a touch of heat. Big chocolate tastes up front, with some mild cayenne pepper in the aftertaste. I find this aftertaste to be a little unpleasant, but certainly unique in the beer world. Pretty much a pleasant chocolate stout with a peppery heat that grows as you drink it.

12 oz. bottle I received via a trade with hopscotch. Pours just about black with a large sudsy brown head. The aroma is light cocoa with just the slightest hint of cayenne. The flavor is cocoa up front followed six or seven seconds later by some disappointingly light heat from the cayenne which lingers in the back of the throat. I enjoy Central American cooking with cocoa and hot pepper, and found this beer to be lacking in its attempt.

Thanks to goldtwins for sharing - very carbonated, foamy pour - a tad tart in the nose, with a little dough and cocoa - flavor starts a little tart, too, with notes of cherry, followed by moderate chocolate - the pepper doesn’t show up until the finish, and builds after a while, until you can tastes the vegetal character as well as the spice - these qualities don’t mesh well with the chocolate flavors - interesting, I guess.

Deep black with a firm brown head that disappeared quickly. Aroma is a load of cocoa, dark roasted malt and that spicy hit of pepper. Flavor is creamy cocoa up front followed by the cayenne kick. Full bodied and creamy for a nice finish to a very unique beer. I’ve been told that I have a high tolerance for spicy foods so that probably helps but I actually liked this one.