Anderson Valley Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout
While venturing the beautiful Californian landscape of Mendocino National Forest you come across a strange yet intriguing site. A bear is drinking water from a stream, but something seems different about this bear, antlers are protruding from his head making you wonder how a bear and a deer made it happen. This animal would be a combination between a bear and a deer resulting in a “beer!” Anderson Valley’s Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout features their iconic Boonsville antlered bear on the artwork of the glass. The Oatmeal stout boasts a 5.8% ABV with a slight bitterness of 14 IBU’s.
Anderson Valley Brewing Company has been around since 1987 and resides in Boonville, CA. In the early years of production, Anderson Valley worked on a small scale of a 10-barrel brewhouse. Eventually, after gaining attention for their awards winning ales, Anderson Valley Brewing Company began construction of a new 30-barrel facility a mile or so down the road of their original brewhouse. Additionally, Anderson Valley Brewing Company has been establishing an exclusive partnership with Wild Turkey® Bourbon in order to brew Anderson Valley’s bourbon barrel-aged beers.
Understanding the nature of a traditional Oatmeal Stout allows us to know Anderson’s Valley Oatmeal Stout will be creamy instead of grainy in the mouthfeel due to the fact that oatmeal is used rather than malted barley. And with that understanding, we begin to pour. This Oatmeal Stout pours a deep mahogany obsidian color almost to the point where the beer is considered pitch black. Large amounts of micro-bubbles form on the mocha colored head which dissipate at moderate pace leaving a slight amount of lacing on the edges of the glass. Notes of grain, vanilla, light cocoa, bitter robust coffee, roasted nuts, earthy spices and chocolate are present in the aroma of the beer.
With the aroma and appearance down, we move on to the best part of the review, the FLAVOR! Notes of dark roasted malts, toasted oats, bittersweet coffee beans, toffee and slight undertones of light dark cherry are present in the flavor of the beer. And with the beer being an Oatmeal Stout, we have a silky smooth creamy mouthfeel that makes this stout very easy drinking. Not too heavy and not too light, allowing for a medium bodied smooth stout with a dry malt/bitter hop finish.
Anderson Valley Oatmeal Stout will follow the traditional food pairing rule of most stouts; stouts pair with chocolate. However, due to the fact that this stout is an “Oatmeal” stout, different pairings will also be included. Dishes such as French onion soup, pulled pork sliders, smoked meats, and chocolate desserts will pair nicely with the Oatmeal Stout’s characteristics. Our BeerTv food pairing choice was a fudge brownie with milk chocolate icing topped with crushed walnuts. The chocolate aspect of the brownie’s icing allowed for a compliment with the chocolate in the stout while the soft delicate texture of the brownie also provided a compliment with the creamy smooth mouthfeel of the Oatmeal Stout.
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“Without question, the greatest invention in the history of mankind is beer. Oh, I grant you that the wheel was also a fine invention, but the wheel does not go nearly as well with pizza.”- Dave Barry
