Brewer: Oaklyn Springs Brewery opened last year in Fuquay-Varina. Daniel “Rusty” Barker, the head brewer, worked at Bond Brothers Beer Company for a year before embarking on his own brewing path. The brewery recently commissioned its five-barrel brewhouse and is now producing a wide variety of styles.
Order up: Crude Extraction is a coffee-oaked imperial stout featuring coffee from Mountain Air Roasting in Asheville. The beer pours like its viscous namesake: thick and luscious, jet black and opaque. The head is dark tan with tiny bubbles which dissipate quickly. Soon enough, the beer reverts to looking like the surface of an oil slick.
Flavor: Hints of tobacco, coffee, cherry cola, and black olive all come out as you anticipate that first sip. Its aroma is complex enough that one can linger over it for a long time, thinking about the various aspects of the beer before sampling it.
The beer drinks like it smells; imagine an espresso with a splash of cherries and dark chocolate. Other notes of roasted coffee and raisins express themselves as you savor this beer.
The beer has a medium-low carbonation that gives it a toasty sharpness in line with a fine cup of coffee. There is a slight warming note at the end of each sip that reminds you this beer is higher in gravity at 9 percent ABV.
Crude Extraction is as advertised. It is a full-bodied beer that, if you are a fan of coffee and beer, is worth seeking out.
Oaklyn Springs Brewery
2912 North Main St., Suite 100, Fuquay Varina
(919) 762-0049
oaklynsprings.com
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