Beer of the Weekend #432: Coffee Bender
Despite the fact I have once again reintroduced my Sunday through Thursday drinking prohibition, I still have a couple new brews from my Minnesota haul and decided to allow myself a lunchtime beer for sampling purposes. It is Friday, after all.
Plus, today’s brown bottle lunch is brewed with coffee. I do not want to drink too much of it tonight.
The beer today is something I have wanted to try for a while: Coffee Bender, brewed by the Surly Brewing Company of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
Serving type: 16-ounce can. The “CANNED ON” date printed on the bottom of the can is “01/14/13.” Kudos to Surly for printing freshness dates!
Appearance: Poured into a nonick pint glass. The color is deep, ruby brown. I was expecting it to be darker and opaque, but I will take it. (Honestly, I always assumed Coffee Bender was Surly’s stout.) A finger of tan, uneven head left a thin but spotted skim of foam and a buttery ring around the edge.
Smell: It offers a powerful dose of straight black coffee roast, which dominates the aroma. Frankly, it is hard to smell a hint of anything else.
Taste: Straight black coffee, complete with that coffee-like, bitter, roasted astringency that grates the taste buds and fouls the breath. It is coating my entire mouth. Unlike the aroma, though, there are hints of other flavors, especially on the tail of each sip — presumably remnants of the Bender base: toasted caramel, toffee, cocoa, and maybe molasses.
Drinkability: Good stuff, but can I get some beer with my coffee? I love coffee infused beer, but this is more coffee than beer. I would have liked more complexity.
Fun facts about Coffee Bender:
-Style: Surly calls it “Coffee flavored American Brown Ale” while it is classified on BA as “American Brown Ale.”
-Price: $12.49/four-pack at Richfield Liquors in Richfield, Minnesota.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.5 percent ABV, according to the Surly website. The ABV written on the can is 5.1 percent ABV.
-IBU: 45.
-Color: 45 SRM.
-Nerdiness from the Surly website (typo included):
The can features the same text, on with the typo corrected (“…and satisfies like…”).
-According to the Surly website, Coffee Bender is brewed with “Guatemalan Finca Vista Hermosa Full City Roast by Coffee and Tea Ltd.”
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
Plus, today’s brown bottle lunch is brewed with coffee. I do not want to drink too much of it tonight.
The beer today is something I have wanted to try for a while: Coffee Bender, brewed by the Surly Brewing Company of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
Serving type: 16-ounce can. The “CANNED ON” date printed on the bottom of the can is “01/14/13.” Kudos to Surly for printing freshness dates!
Appearance: Poured into a nonick pint glass. The color is deep, ruby brown. I was expecting it to be darker and opaque, but I will take it. (Honestly, I always assumed Coffee Bender was Surly’s stout.) A finger of tan, uneven head left a thin but spotted skim of foam and a buttery ring around the edge.
Smell: It offers a powerful dose of straight black coffee roast, which dominates the aroma. Frankly, it is hard to smell a hint of anything else.
Taste: Straight black coffee, complete with that coffee-like, bitter, roasted astringency that grates the taste buds and fouls the breath. It is coating my entire mouth. Unlike the aroma, though, there are hints of other flavors, especially on the tail of each sip — presumably remnants of the Bender base: toasted caramel, toffee, cocoa, and maybe molasses.
Drinkability: Good stuff, but can I get some beer with my coffee? I love coffee infused beer, but this is more coffee than beer. I would have liked more complexity.
Fun facts about Coffee Bender:
-Style: Surly calls it “Coffee flavored American Brown Ale” while it is classified on BA as “American Brown Ale.”
-Price: $12.49/four-pack at Richfield Liquors in Richfield, Minnesota.
-Serving temperature: 45-50ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.5 percent ABV, according to the Surly website. The ABV written on the can is 5.1 percent ABV.
-IBU: 45.
-Color: 45 SRM.
-Nerdiness from the Surly website (typo included):
Coffee Bender refreshes like an iced-coffee, is aromatic as a bag of whole beans as satisfies like your favorite beer. The Surly brew team has developed a cold extraction process that results in intense coffee aromatics and flavor bringing together two of our favorite beverages. Your only dilemma will be whether to finish your day or start it with a Coffee Bender.
The can features the same text, on with the typo corrected (“…and satisfies like…”).
-According to the Surly website, Coffee Bender is brewed with “Guatemalan Finca Vista Hermosa Full City Roast by Coffee and Tea Ltd.”
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
