Brewery: Ca l’Arenys / Cervesa Guineu
Country: Spain
Size: 33cl
ABV: 9.5%
Price: 37kr
Systembolaget: 81201
Shockingly, there aren’t many stouts being exported from Spain to Sweden. In fact, currently there is just one stout making its way over here from the land of paella. An imperial stout with Madagascar vanilla did sound delicious and that it would have all the components of a great beer. When I took this in for the tasting, I had to consult Ratebeer first as quite frankly I had never heard of the brewery before. It had very good reviews though so I thought I would give it a try. Not only was this my favorite beer of the night by far, it is also one of my favourite stouts I’ve tried this year.
As is the common way with imperial stouts, it was pitch black with a gorgeous creamy head. The head was a real big plus to the beer, as it formed this beautiful mocha layer on the beer and remained pretty constant through the sampling. As it was poured into the glass it was evident it had a full body that had a silky sheen to it. Vanilla and cream pulled through nicely on the nose, along with milk chocolate and alcohol. Big espresso notes were noted in the first gulp that then subside slightly to allow a delicious ice cream hit to break through alongside it. The vanilla sweetness lingers on the palate as the beer coats the tongue with its velvet rich body. . For a beer with no lactose in it, they have really managed to give the beer an amazing body. A big alcoholic warmth slowly built on the back of the tongue and in the chest, but it never felt boozy as some stronger beers can be. It left a lot of sweetness on the palate, very much like younger brother of Omnipollo Aon.
This is a very nice imperial stout it must be said. Every component is well thought out and the whole package works great together. For me, this is exactly what I would want in a stout. I have never seen it for sale in a pub here in Sweden, and I feel that’s almost a shame as more people should be trying this. You do need to buy 12 at a time if you want to import this at Systembolaget, but I would recommend getting a few friends together a splitting a box. Highly recommended!