Firestone Walker Velvet Merlin

Brewed by Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Style: Stout
Paso Robles, California USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker, Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

Pours black, great chocolate, nutty, espresso aroma. Roasted coffee bean and chocolate taste. This was one of the best stouts I’ve had the pleasure of drinking.

Very good natural coffee flavors. Another winner from Firestone. Used to be called Velvet Merkin. One can understand the name change.

Enjoyed on tap as part of the Darkside flight at Bruery Provisions in Orange, CA. Appearance a dark murky brown with almost no head. Aroma, oh man, oatmeal, espresso, cocoa, bourbon, chocolate...this should be a cologne. Taste is f’ing incredible.  God dammit, when I first sipped this I almost pounded my fist on the table since it tasted so good.  There’s hazelnut, a bit of hops, and the aforementioned ingredients.  Well balanced, decadent, I want more. Nothing else to say about this, truly awesome.

Comes out of the tap a dark-chocolate brown just a few whiskers above black with a thick tan head. Strong, smoky aroma has rich notes of chocolate, quality coffee and licorice. Mouth-filling, smoky flavor delights the taste buds with molasses, coffee, chocolate and licorice - a liquid feast. Sweet and hop-bitter hints balance each other nicely. Texture has full body and plenty of fizz. Magically delicious. ;)

Several 16oz samples on tap from the Davis Graduate. Aroma is very pleasant with some lightly sweet chocolate notes along with some metallic undertones. Nicely aromatic. Mostly transparent mahogany body present with a nice, bubbly orange-tan head. Starts sweet and quite chocolatey before it becomes somewhat roasted in the middle. Followed by a touch of woodiness, too. Very smooth-bodied, and extremely drinkable. Really, really, NICE! PS - I didn’t appreciate much of the bourbon flavor from the barrel aging, and I am quite ok with this.

In short: One of my favorite below 6% session stout/porter beer. That simple
How: Bottle 12oz. Consumed relatively fresh (2 months of age?). Bottle sent to me by mcberko, thanks a lot Matt
The look: Near black body topped by a medium beige head with medium retention
In long: Nose is pleasantly all over the place proposing roast, citrus fruits, cocoa nibs, milk chocolate, toasted oats, leafy hops… and more. Taste is incredibly smooth yet complex and very nourishing. Chocolate cake, semi-sweet caramel, roast, creamy oats, refreshing citrus fruits, vanilla, leafy hops, toasted chocolate chips cookies, more…. Just enough smooth bitterness to provide balance. Body is creamy and velvety with many soft bubbles, wonderful mouthfeel here. I’m a session-beer lover but for stouts/porters I usually prefer the higher gravity ones except for a few exceptions and this Velvet Merlin is a major exception. A true kick-ass stout that satisfied me as much as a nice impy stout but remained as sessionnable as my favorite session stouts (St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout, others…). Widely available and at around $3/bottle, if this gets a good distribution on the east-coast this beer will become my session stout/porter. Underrated session beer, some beer snobs get angry at people who don’t give a good score to a great beer, but not me, I don’t have don’t have any hard feelings towards those tasteless scumbags.

Very good. Rich malty toasted with a hint of espresso and chocolate that stays on the palate but doesnt overdo it. Just right balance. Overall great, smeel is rich dark roast and sweet malts just like the taste beautiful.

Unbelievable oatmeal stout. Insanely big bodied and creamy, yet easy to drink and almost refreshing and crisp. Lots of toasted chocolate and coffee notes, and a bittersweet, slightly bitter and long chocolate finish. I love this beer.

Aroma is rich dark roasted malt with hints of coffee and chocolate. Pours dark velvet black with rapidly dissipating dark tan head and no lacing. The taste richly robust! Roasted malts, with hints of coffee, chocolate, dark fruit. The taste is on the front side with nothing bit velvet on the backside. Full body with soft carbonation. Smooth mouthfeel. Overall, a great stout. Thanks for sharing, Ken ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

A black beer here with a fairly tall tan head. The head is dense and mousse like. Nice contrast. Aroma of rich roasted malts and coffee and chocolate. I didn’t pickup any oak barrels or whiskey in the nose. Roasted malts are dominate in the taste not overpowering but just the first thing you taste upon first sip. Accent flavors includes coffee and bittersweet chocolate and suggestive hints of oak and spirits. Fuggle hops lend just a light bittering to this stoudt. Mouthfeel is a bit thin for a stout but none the less it’s smooth and easy drinking. An excellent well made stout smooth and creamy with layers of flavor. That being said, I would like to see the carbos pumped up a bit as well as an increase in head size for appearance purposes. I also think it’s a bit thin giving a washed down feel. As stated previous, I would drink this beer many more times... and with glee