Surly Four

February 23, 2010. The day that 48 gallons of an iced espresso milk stout, 10 % alcohol by volume, was depleted in a mere 2 hours at the Blue Nile Restaurant & Lounge. Talk about a thirsty crowd! We knew it was going to be busy, but neglected to correctly assess how much larger Surly Nation had grown, year after year. (For some perspective, we also did the release for Surly Three, a black braggot. Their were two 16 gallon kegs for that one. The first blew out in 40 minutes. The second lasted another three days.)
I felt so bad for people who came at 9:30 to find we were out!
Luckily, we got another small keg a week later.
I wrote the following:

"Solid ebony, with a slim roasted tan head. Perfect. No light escapes this...

Aroma: coffee comes first, then the creamy milk, bittersweet and roasty below that. Love it.

Taste: deep and dark, full and rich, massive mouthfeel, fairly clinging to every surface available, hanging long in the finish...espresso remains foremost in the flavor, with creamy lactose still shining through, some chocolate, as well..little hops to be counted in this cavalcade, but they're masked by the mountainous mass of malt.

An immense beer, a conundrum, a certain circumspection of quizzical circumstances...when have I ever tasted the coffee and the milk and the ice? In this way? When have you? When has anyone?
Each next sip brings more of the bitterness, the roast, the rich malt, some cocoa, some bitter coffee, then the milky cream, then...boom, you realize how strong it is... too drinkable, and delicious for the reported 10% abv.

What a treat, this Surly Four. And the more I think and drink, the more I think, what a drink, what a match of the yum, and the mmm, and the hmm, and the ohhh.

Pity this didn't last long on tap."

I popped one of my few bottles last night, and found that it's lost nothing. Just as yummy as when it was fresh. In your face, everyone who said "it's losing the coffee flavor."

About the photos: below: most of the hard working Blue Nile crew, enjoying some Four that we stashed away before the final keg blew, Peter, Cory,Karl, and me. On top: the craziest looking wax dipping I've ever seen.