Cigar City Brewing Sardo Numspa

Cigar City Brewing Sardo Numspa is an American Double/Imperial Stout that takes it’s inspiration from devil’s food cake. It is aged on hazelnuts, Indonesian vanilla, 2 types of cacao nibs and cypress wood. Bottled on 12/21/15, opened on 04/10/16.

This stout pours with an opaque black color that has a nice caramel brown near the top and edges, and a big dark brown head that fades over the course of a minute or two. The aroma is big and boozy with a rather Russian Imperial Stout like aroma with hints of licorice, dark fruits, vanilla and alcohol. On the palate is dense chocolate, mild roasted hazelnuts, a touch of dry wood, raisins, a dash of soy sauce and a slight bit of alcohol heat. The finish is dry and woody, coming from the cypress wood I’ll presume. The mouth-feel is thick and coating with a perfect amount of carbonation.

I’m not sure I would say this tastes or smells just like the dessert, but it tastes and smells delicious.