Beer Review: 2X Presso by Southern Tier Brewing Company

Welcome to my Beer Review: 2X Presso by Southern Tier Brewing Company. Lets start with the basics:

Beer: 2X Presso | Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing | Locale: Lakewood, NY | Style: Milk Stout| ABV: 7.5% | IBU: 55 | Color: Dark Brown/Black | Aroma: Coffee, Caramel | Flavor: Roasted Coffee, Cocoa, Caramel | Untappd: DogFishThis

                                                    My Personal Rating:  4/5 

Ideal Place to Drink This Beer: In a locally owned coffee shop on a crisp spring morning while writing your own manuscript for Good Will Hunting 2. 
                
A couple of years ago I was at my parents' house in Seattle; my dad went to the garage and brought up a Southern Tier beer, Crème Brulee stout. That beer put STBC on the map for me but sadly I returned to Idaho where they did not distribute (notice the past tense?). A couple weeks ago Southern Tier came to a local bottle shop, Bier Thirty, to celebrate their newfound distribution partnership with Boise! I picked up as many of their beers as I could and this was one of them.



(Photo courtesy of: http://ragingyeti.com/2013/11/19/southern-tier-brewery-tour/)

2X Presso is a milk stout that is brewed with espresso coffee beans and lemon peel. It pours smooth and clear (as clear as it can be for it's dark color) with just about no head. Upon first sip this beer is all espresso, and in the best way! The beer is smooth, medium bodied, and full of strong coffee notes. While I didn't get a strong taste of lemon, the lemon took away some of the coffee bitterness and mixed well with the cocoa sweetness.

Overall, I was very happy with this beer and recommend not passing this one up if it comes your way. I'm a fan of coffee and stouts already and this combination is one of the best I've had. I think the only thing that would have made this beer better is if I had drank it on a cooler day, it was about 90 degrees out at the time and I will have to make an effort to try this again in the winter time. Prost!