Arcadia Starboard Stout

Brewed by Arcadia Brewing Company
Style: Sweet Stout
Battle Creek, Michigan USA

Serve in English pint

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THIS BEER REQUIRES A TON OF PATIENCE, WHEN YOU POP THE TOP THE HEAD LITERALY STARTS TO COME OUT OF THE BOTTLE, POUR IT IN A GLASS AND ITS LIKE NO OTHER BEER, ITS ALMOST LIKE A ELEMENTARY SCHOOL VOLCANO PROJECT ERUPTING , THE HEAD SERIOUSLY NEVER STOPS ON THIS DARK RICH LOOKING BEER. IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE A ROOTBEER FLOAT. IT SMELLS OF DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE AND TOASTY ROASTED MALTS, IMMEDIATELY THIS BREW IS VERY INTRIGUING TO THE EYES AND NOSE. HOWEVER, THE FLAVOR FALLS QUITE SHORT TO ITS PREVIOUS ACCOMPLISHMENTS IT TASTES VERY SUBTLE OF CHOCOLATE AND TOASTED MALT FLAVOR ACTUALLY IT ALMOST TASTE WATERED DOWN MAKING ME WONDER IF THEY HAVE ADDED CARAMEL COLORING TO MAKE IT APPEAR MORE ROBUST. THE AFTER TASTE LEAVES A SUBTLY STRANGE MECHANICAL PLASTIC LIKE FLAVOR. NOT BAD NOT GREAT, SOMEWHAT DISSAPPOINTING FOR A BEER THAT LOOKS AND SMELLS SO GOOD.

On tap at Rochester Mills...one of the silkiest, creamiest stouts I’ve ever had. Excellent stout.

Nitro Draft at Villains. Pours deep black with a tan head. Nose is softly chocolate and woody hops. Soem faint roast peaks through as well but overall is a bit subdued. On taste, has a nice creaminess that lends it to appearing sweet though not overly so. well balanced and nicely roasted with a full malt profile. Surprisingly solid.

12 oz. bottle at home poured into a Delirium snifter. Standard stout aromas of coffee, chocolate, toasted malts. Body is a little thin. Flavor is standard for the style, and mirrors the nose. Finish is under hopped, could use a stronger bitterness. The only thing out of the ordinary on this one was that the oatmeal gives it a pleasant smoothness and creaminess. It also adds a lactic note to the finish. Ordinary.

On Tap (NITRO) at The Map Room. Pours dark with traditional roasted notes of coffe and cocoa. The oatmeal makes a nice dry appeasrance at the finish.

UPDATED: SEP 23, 2011 I had this on tap at Ashleys, a bartender recommendation...It pours nice and black with a full creamy head that has really nice lacing, my hopes are high...The aroma is really dead, hard to pull anything out but a little roast coffee, my hopes start to fade...The taste is better than the aroma, it has a light flavor but not much here and its super thin to drink. This is nothing more than an average oatmeal stout. Had this on draft at Arcadia, and its much better. Original score was 2.8.

Nitro tap. Very mild aroma... Some smooth malt and chocolate. Medium body, smooth. Taste is a bit off, kind of sour vs the expected sweetness. Just okay, but I’ll try again.

An oat malt stout, as opposed to the more common non-malted oatmeal variety. This was a silver medal winner in the 2003 World Beer Championship. Very dark in color, it opens up very nicely as it warms. The nose is the standard coffee aroma, from the chocolate barley, with a cocoa head that dissipates a little too quickly. The flavors are complex, however, as you roll it around the tongue. It almost has a lactic feel to it, with a little silkiness from the oats, but I also detected hints of grape and plum, in addition to the expected coffee and chocolate notes. There is a definite hop presence, but it’s not too firm. The lingering after-taste is mainly malt and sweetness. It’s a very nice stout and pretty standard for its style.

On nitro tap at Frisco Grille (Columbia, MD): Pours an opaque black with a creamy, full-lacing beige head. Has a muted, but lightly sweet dark caramel and chocolate malty nose. Starts with a creamy fullness and some light malty sweetness with a touch of bittering hop balance before a semi-sweet toasty finish with a hint of coffee roast. Well-balanced and very drinkable with mild complexity.

Pours dark black with a thick light brown nitro head. Roasted barley and chocolate malt in the nose. Ultra smooth mouth-feel, medium-bodied with a dry finish. Chocolate malt flavor, dry-roasted finish. An outstanding oatmeal stout. Very satisfying.

Pours a deep brown with minimal head. Not an all around awesome stout but easy to drink.