Lion Stout

Brewed by Lion Brewery (Sri Lanka)
Style: Foreign Stout
Biyagama, Sri Lanka

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

Thick rich creamy head and oily black body. Full bodied, rich roasty and sweet with good complexity. Hides its alcohol masterfully well. One might think that at 8% abv this is more of an imperial stout, but it really has a smooth laid back stout body to it. A very unique and great beer that I'm glad found its way to my stomach from Sri Lanka.

Deep black stout with a thick creamy moka head, Bitter unsweetened chocolate aroma with herbal notes. In mouth, sweetish chocolate with nice bittering hops, lingering and restrained. Rich and creamy mouthfeel. Bought at LCBO.

Für ein Stout ist der Antrunk eher mild, eine angenehme herb-süßlich Würzigkeit mit tiefgehender Malzigkeit stellt sich erst etwas später ein. Dieses Arome erreicht schnell seinen Intensitätshöhepunkt und verharrt dort einige Zeit. Etwas bananig süß werdend, tief malzig, dieses Arome wird mit der Zeit deutlich milder. Im Abgang leicht und angenehm schokoladig, wenig herb, das Malz wird wieder intensiver. Gelungenes Stout mit genügend Tiefgang und Ausgeglichenheit. 10/11/11/12/12/11

Bottle. Black colour with a light brown head. Aroma is licorice and rosted coffee. Flavour is the same.

Bottled. A big black beer with a quickly dissipating off-white head. The aroma is quite sweet for a stout with some perfumy notes. The taste is also sweet but there are good licquorice notes. A very tasty clean beer.

Am I rate-whoring for a new country, or am I trying another new stout? Can it be both? This stout pours deep brown, but with a bit of light through the body, and a large dark tan head. Smells like the quintessential foriegn stout, if you can define such a thing: roasted grains and light smoke, some dry malts, some almost-hot alcohol or bite of some other sort. Semi-thick, very roasty and robust, very sharp on the palate with a bite of alcohol, smoke and toasted grains. I’m into this one, it’s definitely worthy of the praise I’ve heard.

The Lure:
Ashes and dark chocolate bathe sumptuously under the rich, compact head.

The Festivities:
Roasted malt and bitter coffee beans bring me to admit I was expecting a much sweeter Foreign Stout. Excellent! Charred dark chocolate and lactic undertones roam in the smooth and wealthy mouthfeel, where alcohol is well-hidden and all is geared towards soothing and comforting.

Transcendence:
A long purr.

625ml $3.99 bottle. Nice! Pours with a large tan head over a black body. Aroma of chocolate, vanilla, lightly estery, dark fruits and chalky cocoa powder. Taste is chocolate, dry, some leather, coffee, dark roast. Decently bitter. Somewhat abrupt finish. Quite creamy to lively carbonation.