St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout - McAuslan Brewing, Montreal

I'm finally opening this bottle of St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout after it was mentioned by a fellow beer connoisseur. I originally picked up this bottle back in December and it's been sitting in my basement beer fridge for about nine months now. I enjoy Oatmeal Stouts quite a bit but, being summer, it didn't seem like a the best time to drink something quite this dark. That's been my excuse since at least March... Well, I've finally gotten around to opening it up and it seems like I've really been missing out.

I was told to look for subtle hints of cherry and chocolate in this beer. Within a few seconds of pouring this beer into the glass they'd already made their way to my nose. Going in for closer inspection I noticed a great oatmeal cookie aroma coming through the tan head of this beer. At this point it didn't really matter what this beer tasted like, I was completely smitten by the aroma alone.

The outward appearance of this beer was more or less what I had expected, it was black and had a tan head... There was a little lacing down the side of the glass but nothing extraordinary. It's always a nice reward when drinking through your pint to see rings of foam clinging to the glass.

The flavor of this beer didn't quite live up to it's aroma, but I don't mean that as a fault by any means. The aroma eluded to more sweet flavors and fruitiness in this beer. The St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout actually tasted more like an Oatmeal Stout... if you can believe that. There was very subtle cherry or raisin sweetness that came through the bittersweet dark chocolate malt but it wasn't enough to be a distraction from the oatmeal base. This beer drank very smooth and had a nice thick body that wasn't too viscous.

I'd gladly drink a case of this Oatmeal Stout and I'd recommend it to any of my friends who are looking for a solid Oatmeal Stout with something a little extra. The chocolate malt and subtle sweetness really add a great layer of complexity and excitement to this beer.