Ninkasi Brewing Oatis Oatmeal Stout

After the light beer yesterday, I decided to hit the polar opposite end of the beer spectrum and crack open a bottle of Ninkasi Brewing Company's Oatis Oatmeal Stout.  Ninkasi is another one of those great Oregon microbreweries that popped up out of nowhere and quickly established itself as one of the top beer makers around.  If you ever find yourself near Eugene, make sure to check out the Ninkasi Brewery and tasting room.  The fireplace outside is amazing and the outdoor seating is casual but chic.

Only available on tap or in 22oz. bottles, Oatis poured into the the glass (pardon the accidental North Coast plug on the glass) frothy and espresso black, with a milkshake thick, coffee colored head. The nose was strong coffee, black licorice, with a very subtle undertone of lawn clippings.  There was no transparency to this Stout!

For all it's heaviness and body displayed in the pouring, it was a surprise that the first notes when drank were lemon rind (likely from well balanced hopping).  Within a second, the hops receded to the back of my mouth and the beer's thickness (think a root beer float after the ice cream melts) and mildly-sweet mocha flavor came through and coated my mouth.  Oatis had a loooong finish.

Not a huge stout fan (I typically prefer porters when drinking a dark beer, as many stouts have the flavor of burnt. day old coffee), I have to say Ninkasi brought the best qualities of a stout to the table with such class it's hard to find something to not like about Oatis.  That said, this is a heavy beer, and after pulling back 22oz. I was full.  The perfect end cap to a cold night, to be sure!

ABV 7.2
IBU 50
OG 1.072
TG N/A

I've already had a couple of people ask about what I have for the upcoming weeks... here's a preview of things to come.  As always, donations are accepted ;-)