Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout

Now I recognize the hypocrisy in reviewing an oatmeal stout when I just spoke of the negatives of drinking stouts during the summer in my very last post. Ah well, these things happen.

This will be the longest-time-coming review that I do. Brian has talked about this beer for probably about 10 years and I have only now procured a bottle. Thanks Mike!!

Brew Details: What we have here is a bottle of Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout, brewed by Anderson Valley Brewing Company of Boonville, California

Serving Conditions: I just pulled this one out of the fridge, so its about 45 degrees. I’m drinking this out of a standard pint glass.

Appearance: The color is deep and dark with no light penetrating it. It poured with a very slight head that subsided pretty quickly.

Scent: The aroma is incredibly sweet, it honestly makes me think of smelling a glass of chocolate milk. That may be a stretch, but not much of one.

Taste: The initial taste is sweet, but not overly so. It definitely has a sweeter smell than taste. This beer has the smooth taste that you’d expect out of an oatmeal stout, but with its balanced blend of malt, chocolate and hops, you end up with a very unique tasting oatmeal stout. I think that what really sets this beer apart is how the brewer cleverly used the hops to balance the sweetness without leaving any hop aftertaste. In fact, the aftertaste is very slightly bitter with no sign of hops.

Mouthfeel: The mouthfeel is watery and light with a surprising amount of carbonation.

Drinkability: I could drink multiple glasses of this brew without difficulty. In fact, I think that Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout presents the opposite problem as this is definitely the easiest drinking oatmeal stout that I've ever had. Keeping much stock of this beer on hand could prove problematic as I'm sure I'd have a difficult time staying out of it.

Notes: I let a portion of this beer reach near room temperature as I sipped on my glass. As the brew warmed, the sweetness grew and the slight bitter finish waned. This is one to serve at about 50 degrees.

I like this beer a lot and I will seek it out. The next time I am in Chicago I will be returning with a small supply. I have only one complaint about this beer: Brian, you should have gotten me some of this years ago!

I can't call this a quintessential oatmeat stout as it really is something unique. At the same time this is one of the most enjoyable, well balanced beers I've ever had.

I give this a 9.5 out of 10.