Hitachino Nest Classic Ale

Why I tried this: After enjoying the Hitachino Stout so much I decided it was time to try another beer from Japan's Hitachino. I was in an Ale kinda mood so when I came across the classic ale on the menu my mind was almost made up. I asked Greg about this beer and he said it was great so what more convincing would I have needed?

Smell: Less hoppy then expected. There was a stong malt scent that covered most of the hop scent. Caramel scented.

Taste: Not what I expected at all but still good. I went into this beer expecting a lighter mostly floral hop flavor and thats not what you get at all. This beer has a deep dark malt flavor that reminds you of a woody flavor and caramel. The flavor is pleasant and enjoyable. There is a slight hop flavor but it absolutely is not the defining characteristic of the beer, it's just a backup support actor to the malts.

I would give this beer a rating of a quarter glass left. This beer was great tasting but it did not taste anything at all like what I expected going into it which is not a bad thing. The malt flavor of this beer is smooth and delicious and this is probably a beer I would order again if I saw it out somewhere.

--Jon

Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout

Why I got this: While at World of Beer UCF I decided that I wanted another stout that I hadn't tried.  Since its my favorite beer style my choices are quickly dwindling of stouts at World of Beer that I have not had yet.  The bartender Lindsey suggested I give this one a shot.  Lindsey always recommends good beers so I decided to get it.  I had never seen a Japanese stout in my life until this one.

Smell: A coffee and chocolate aroma is about 90% of the smell as I expected.  There is a different scent that was more subtle and less noticeable but I couldn't identify it.

Taste: Up front you get a strong coffee and chocolate flavor.  What amplifies the coffee and chocolate malt flavors is how roasted they are.  Adding to the bitterness of this stout is the very strong roast flavor.  If you dont mind a strong more bitter malt flavor you would probably really like this stout.  The strong roasted after flavor also will stick around a little bit longer then you would typically expect.


So whats the final rating? Well I really did enjoy this beer a lot from the strong roasted flavor to the robust coffee and chocolate malt flavors.  This beer absolutely had a unique flavor to it and it will absolutely be a beer that I remember and stands out however there are also a lot of other stouts I would rather have over this one.  If I want a strong stout I would probably just go for the Nitro Milk Stout by Left Hand or Rogue Chocolate Stout. Id probably end up taking a Murphys or Guiness over this as well.  It was a very good beer, but I would probably only get it in certain circumstances.  This beer receives a good rating of 1/4 left in the glass.


--Jon