Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast

Brewed By: Mikkeller in Copenhagen, Denmark (Brewed at Lervig Aktiebryggeri)

Purchased: 12oz single bottle bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, Illinois; 2014

Style/ABV: Oatmeal Stout, 7.5%

Reported IBUs: ?

This beer and the Beer Geek Brunch have been on my to-do list for a long time, but damn these are expensive singles. About Mikkeller: 

Mikkeller is that European brewery that does things like an American craft brewery. The brewery was founded in 2006 by Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, a humble math and physics teacher who enjoyed craft beer and homebrewing. Mikkel and his childhood friend Kristian Keller bought a few American books about brewing, and began brewing beer and entering it into competitions (and winning!) for two and a half years. Eventually, Mikkel and Keller began brewing beer at the Danish microbrewery Ørbæk, and Mikkel's twin brother Jeppe began selling their beer at his beer shop. Mikkeller's first big break came with their infamous "Beer Geek Breakfast." Since then, the brewery exports beer to over 40 countries, and brews the majority of their beer at de Proef Brouwerij in Belgium. However, Mikkeller is also nicknamed the "phantom" or "gypsy" microbrewery, as they brew at a number of host facilities in many different countries; they have also brewed over 100 different beers in a wide variety of styles. You can read more about the brewery here. 

The Beer Geek Breakfast is an Oatmeal Stout brewed with coffee. According to Ratebeer, the ingredients include water; pils, oat, smoked, caramunich, brown, pale chocolate and chocolate, roasted barley, and flaked oats malts; centennial and cascade hops; ale yeast; and gourmet coffee.

Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast

As you'd probably guess, this beer pours jet black kicking up a finger of dark, mocha-brown head. There are fantastic alcohol legs, even at 7.5%, and greasy head leaves dark residual coats on the glass. There's something about seeing a hearty Stout that makes me happy, I wish my sponsor understood.

Even at slightly cool temps, this beer is exploding with aromatics. It's like opening up the cupboard that houses the coffee in the break room at work. I'm getting stale coffee, biscotti, mild coffee acidity, slight tang from the acidity, cherries, chocolate, chocolate-dipped cherries (duh), and some rich nutty notes. Peanuts and pecans come to mind. There's that oatmeal note on the nose as well....just a complicated myriad of good smells. 

The taste follows through with some of the nose, only with a slightly diminishing body. Honestly...I'm gonna let this warm up a bit, as right now I'm getting a lot of bitter hops and bitter coffee. You'll have to take my word that after this sentence I went to shower.....and I'm back. Yeah, as this warms up some of the coffee notes start to unravel a bit, with bitter, stale coffee. I'm getting biscotti, bitter coffee, spent coffee in the filter, woody notes, ash, dirt, some roast, and super bitter baker's chocolate. Cocoa, the legit stuff.

This is a medium-full bodied Stout, thanks largely in part to the coffee which cuts through the body like a sword. When you add the carbonation to the coffee, it really thins the base beer out, for better or worse. Palate depth is good, but complexity leaves a bit to be desired. At this point I'm well-versed in coffee Stouts, so I feel comfortable saying this could dial things up a bit. It's just kind of one-note. I do like how the 7.5% is completely hidden. Up front: acidic and tangy coffee, some fruity notes, hops, bitter coffee; the mids roll into more bitter coffee, woody notes, dark baker's chocolate, cocoa, dirt/ash; the back end is trailing bitterness, with more stale coffee, dirt/ash, and bitter. Not enough diabetus tones.

Rating: Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Average here...the aroma promises so much, but I'm not feeling the vibe so much in the taste. This is a nicely executed, bitter coffee Stout. If you like that raw, bitter coffee note...this will be right up your alley. It actually reminds me of real cocoa, the bitter stuff. Baker's chocolate. I wonder if this beer would pair well with chocolate, or something sweet like vanilla ice cream. I'd even suggest pairing this with biscotti. I guess you could also pair this with breakfast trimmings, the coffee stands out loud and proud.

Random Thought: It's Brunch time, right?