It’s dessert time, my dudes. While we like to eat, we’d rather drink that deliciousness and dessert beers are the best way to make that happen. Town Hall Brewery harnessed the taste of truffles and put them in a glass. Their Kentucky Truffle 2023 is their best so far.
Kentucky Truffle
Each year, the Town Hall brew crew heads down to bourbon country to hand-select amazing barrels for their upcoming beers. On one of their trips, they came across some tasty truffles and created this beer in an attempt to capture them. Kentucky Truffle was born.
Liquid chocolate pours from crowler to glass, filling it with deep black elixir. A small finger of dark foam bubbles up and quickly fizzes away, leaving no sign it ever existed. Swirling the glass, oily layers are left on the walls of the glass before slowly sliding down the sides. It’s thick and everything feels still.
Dry roasty chocolate fills the nose, with a light sweetness and mingled notes of coffee and caramel. There’s a touch of milk chocolate upfront, followed by dark chocolate and the deep roasted aroma of roasted beans. The bourbon is in the end but grows as it warms, with oak, vanilla, and sweet bourbon dancing together.
Big dark malt fills the mouth, with fine carbonation fizzing on the tongue and releasing a flood of flavor. Layer upon layer of roasted malt mixed with bitter dark chocolate. Light hint of coffee and dark toffee. Sweet bourbon comes in heavy late in each sip. It balances the bitterness of the dark chocolate, with light toasty oak and a dash of vanilla. It’s a lovely dessert, just like a melted truffle with bourbon poured over it.
Though it weighs in at 13.49% ABV, there’s no alcohol heat but certainly a heft to it. Big aroma with the alcohol coming through a bit as it gets nice and warm, and plenty of weight in the mouthfeel.
Truffle Shuffle
The folks at Town Hall Brewery have done a wonderful job of pairing unsweetened dark chocolate with strong milk stout aged in toasted bourbon barrels. It’s so beautifully balanced, and highly drinkable while packed with flavor and body, at the same time.
While Barrel Aged Beer Week 2023 may be over, this beer is likely to make a return at some point throughout the year at the brewery and other Town Hall locations. Be on the lookout for Kentucky Truffle at Town Hall Brewery, it’s a lovely liquid.