Fringe Festival Day 3!

Day 3 of the Fringe!  Saturdays are a busy one, with the first show starting at 1:00 in the afternoon.  Our first stop this fine day was to the Theater in the Round (just down the street from Town Hall and Republic 7 Corners) for a showing of The Tourist Trap.

Need some bloomers?

The Tourist Trap was a really well done production and quite creepy and disturbing, differing from the glut of comedies I've been seeing.  This one would have fit in just fine to the Twin Cities Horror Festival.  Full of disturbing twists, I would recommend this if you like serial killers, gore, and great acting!

Our second show was in the same venue, so we filed out, got in line for our tickets and then back into line for seating.  This time we were seeing Mainly Me Productions' Our American Assassin; or You Can't Handle the Booth!  I've loved every production these guys have done, and this is no exception.  Bordering on the ridiculous at times, this show covers the assassination of Abraham Lincoln from the point of view of the actors in the play he was seeing at the time.  Some great music cues as well.  Silly, funny, an all-around great comedy!

Sj entering the massive eyesore that is the Rarig Center!

Next we trucked it over to the Rarig Center to catch a showing of CIRCULATE.  Last year we saw CLOCKED by this group and found it to be one of the best dance pieces we had ever seen so we tried them out again this year.  Circulate is a bit less about dance and more about movement and physicality. A mix of skits and dance, the show focusses on the news in all its forms, with some excellent improv thrown in as well.  Worth a viewing!

Back to the Theater in the Round!  This time to see Fifth Planet.  I wasn't sure what to expect from this show but had seen actor Edwin Strout and Director/Producer Jean Wolff in my favorite Fringe show of all time The Friar and the Nurse, so I took a chance.  A slow burn of a show, starting quietly and slowly, but building up to a fine and rewarding end.  Both of the actors did an amazing job of handling this understated but very real story of friendships, astronomy, and love.  Great sound and lighting as well.  See it.  Seriously.

Back to the Rarig for Stuck on a Truck: A Hooch Crixby Mystery.  This was a bit of a wild card show for us, filling a blank spot on our well-planned schedule.  Both my wife and I enjoyed the show, but it isn't in our top list.  A fun red-neck murder mystery but not incredibly deep.  There were a few missed cues in our showing, but overall still a decent show.

Yes at this point we actually ate dinner.  A great duck burger at Republic paired with a Founders Devil Dancer for me and I was ready for one last show!

Our final show was The Sex (ED) Show!  By the Dirty Curls.  Banjo toting Courtney McLean fronts this band of ladies (and one guy on bass) who teach us all about sex in song, dance, and storytelling.  Funny doesn't begin to cover what these gals do.  I had tears of laughter draining out of the corners of my eyes through much of the show.  At one point Courtney's banjo strap broke but she went with it-- playing her banjo balanced on one leg like Ian Anderson in Jethro Tull!  Crass, dirty, an occasional boob, this one is not for kids!  In the smallest stage in Rarig, so I would pre-order tickets if you plan on seeing them--they are likely to sell out!

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 2

Continuing my slipshod coverage of this year's Fringe Festival.  Please check out yesterday's entry for more info on the fest!

Escaping from work early on Friday we beat some of the traffic (but not much…) from Waconia to the 7 Corners area near the University of Minnesota.  This area was to be our base of operations this fine but hot summer evening.

Our first show was at the Rarig Thrust theater, one of the largest venues at the Fringe, and just one of 4 different theater spaces in the Rarig building.  We ended up seeing Fotis Canyon, a one man storytelling show by Fringe favorite comedian Mike Fotis.  I've loved his humor and spontaneity in the past, so we always try to get to his shows early in the festival so we don't miss them.  This year's show was a little less wacky than some of his works, but was also much more introspective and rewarding.  This is a well known comedian starting out with humorous but realistic stories of his past, but moves toward a surprisingly emotional and heartfelt end.  This is the best thing Fotis has done in my opinion!

From the raring we booked it over to the Southern Theater to see a terribly named show called Marie-Jeanne Valet Who Defeated La Bete du Gevaudan.  Both my wife and I put this on our question-mark lists, but went ahead and took a chance since the timing worked.  We were both very pleasantly surprised with the result.  A moody quasi-historic tale of a giant wolf terrorizing a famine-ridden town in France, this had some very good acting, especially from the two main characters.  There were a few areas of silliness that I think detracted a bit from the overall vibe, but the show was well worth the time.

Our final show of the night (because we are weak and actually take time out to have dinners) was at the Mixed Blood Theater.  Real Dead Ghosts was a very well acted show featuring a couple staying in a dark cabin in the woods.  The emotion in this piece was impressive and both actors did an impressive job of getting me emotionally invested in such a short time.  One of the best shows I've seen so far this Fringe!

From here we had a very late night dinner at Town Hall Brewery, and of course a great couple of beers!  That Citra Mania is wonderful!

Fringe 2014 Begins!

OK readers, this next week and a half is where most of your usual scheduled beer-centric programming goes down the tubes and is taken over by ART! 

Sj ready to Fringe!

The Minnesota Fringe Festival started Thursday the 31st and runs until 8/10/14.  For those unaware of this amazing performing arts resource right in our backyard here is a quick primer!  Fringe festivals take place all over the country (and even other countries) but Minnesota's is one of the largest, hosting 169 different shows across 19 different theater venues scattered across the Twin Cities.  Each of these 169 shows gets 5 different performances spread randomly over the week and a half of Fringe, with an extra bonus show on the final Sunday for the highest attended show at each different venue.  This is an unjuried festival and entrants are chosen randomly: this results in more variety (and less nepotism) but also can lead to some questionable shows.  Many actors and theater troupes return from year to year and it is fun to search out shows by folks you have liked in the past.  It is also fun to see random shows and take a chance! 

To gain access to any Fringe show you need to by a Fringe button (usable for the whole festival, and often used for discounts on other theater events later in the year.)  After that each 60 minute show is purchased at the individual theater box office (opening 30 minutes before each show) for $12.  Discounts for students!  After seeing an increasing number of shows each year Sj and I have taken the plunge in the last few years and bought the all-access Ultra Pass.  This allows you to get to as many shows as you can manage (we did 42 last year!) but you still have to wait in line and get your tickets with the rest of the folks. 

Some shows are popular and have big lines--get there early if possible!  30 minutes in between shows doesn't leave a lot of time for transport--schedule your shows with as little travel as possible!  Read reviews on the website as often you can pick up on good ones (or ones to avoid) by checking that out.  Talk to other people in line and get recommendations.  Sj and I actually have friends that we only see once a year during Fringe and look forward to catching up each year!

I'm writing these for local folks to check out, but also adding these reviews to the Fringe website.  Seriously check some of these out: get yourself some CULTURE!

Moody shadow shot from the nearly deserted office building after hours...

Thursday we stayed at the New Century Theater in Downtown Minneapolis, fighting traffic and struggling to find parking.  We saw three shows there, taking a brief break for a bite to eat and a Surly Furious across the street at Lyon's Pub.

1) A Very Merry Unauthorized Children's Scientology Pageant

This was a somewhat strange show with an all child and teen cast, set as a pageant exploring the life and times of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.  The cast did a good job with this, though being child actors and also the first show the fringe they had a few slightly missed cues.  All of the actors were very earnest and the subject matter was frankly a little creepy and weird (more so than usual) coming from this cast!  Entertaining for sure.

2) Fiddlestick Conundrum

This performance was a straight stand-up comedy act by the very Midwestern Ben San Del, who is a favorite local comic.  He did a great job handling stand-offish Minnesotan crowds and managed to tie his whole show together in an interesting way by the end of the set.  Well worth a visit if you like stand-up!

3) Four Humors Does Every Show in the Fringe

Four Humors is an amazing theater group that is one of the more sought after in the Fringe over the past few years.  Their version of Lolita last year was possibly the funniest thing I've seen in years! This year they got into the lottery very late (someone canceled about a week ago) so they had to throw together something fast.  Masters of Improv, they centered their show around having an audience member draw a ball from a Bingo container and performed the corresponding show from the 2014 Fringe program based purely on the name, picture and brief description there.  Our performance was Cursed!  The group did an amazing job of physical comedy, on the fly puns and wacked out humor.  I think I might have to see the show again since every one will be a different experience!

J. Carver Distillery: A Teaser

One of the biggest questions I've been getting from my readers and friends over the past 4 months is "What do you know about the new distillery they are building in Waconia?"  Since I live within walking distance from the site and am usually on top of this type of thing, I decided that I should look into this mysterious project more closely!  Founder and partner Bill Miller and Gina Holman, founding partner and manager were kind enough to invite me out to the J. Carver Distillery for a tour and interview.

The site itself is somewhat unusual, taking up the old car dealership just off Highway 5.  When I visited, the place was bustling with activity and construction.  Tradesmen of various types came and went constantly, flitting about like busy worker bees.  Bill and Gina frequently took calls, met people, and made sure things were running smoothly.  Amongst this controlled chaos I received some cool background on this bold project!

Given free reign to talk about his dream, Bill really had a lot to say.  From his passionate and affable discussion I could tell that he was not just financially invested in this concept, but fully emotionally invested as well.  Conceptually he has really taken on the mantle of pioneer and explorer from the distillery's (and our county's) namesake Jonathan Carver.  He admits that opening a craft distillery in our state and our town is covering new ground and requires a lot of exploration and learning.  Not put off by this, he is embracing the challenge and making it part of their mandate!  Bill, a big fan of hospitality and the social aspect of drinking, remembers having cocktail parties for friends and teaching everyone about different drinks like Mojitos.  He enjoys watching people learn about something new and plans to make this aspect a large part of their distillery plans.

Probably the biggest thing J. Carver is going to have to educate people on is just what exactly a distillery is!  Coming from the craft beer and homebrewing world as I do, this seems like an easy one to me, but many people do not have that background and would like to know more.  Now that the craft beer movement has finally taken off in Minnesota, many people assume that J. Carver is a brewery.  Nope!  Beers will usually only get up to about 15% alcohol by volume by natural fermentation by yeast.  Taking a base fermented mash (made from barley, wheat, potato, corn, etc.) the distiller will then run this through a still.  These are cool looking contraptions with coils and columns, usually made of copper.  Alcohol has a lower evaporation point than water and turns to steam first, then condenses as it cools in the coils, collecting again as a more concentrated liquid as it runs through the still.  The result is a much stronger (feel the burn!) alcohol product called a distilled spirit.  While homebrewing beer has been legal since the 1970's (thanks Jimmy Carter!), the distilling process has been highly regulated by the government since the repeal of Prohibition.  Though people do still make bootleg hooch like Moonshine even in this day and age...  As a result of this tougher regulation, J. Carver has had to wade through some very old and often conflicting laws in their quest to open their new small distillery.  Luckily they have had a lot of support from our local state and city government and seem on track to open soon!

What types of spirits are they planning to make?  They have three different stills, each using a different method of distillation to create a different product.  They plan on doing a good mix of vodka, bourbon, rye whiskey, gin, and some liqueurs.  Their third still is much smaller than the other two and they plan to do many small and experimental batches with that one--embracing the pioneering aspect of "craft" to try new and interesting things.  They have already been tossing around ideas for this last still and I am certainly intrigued to see what they decide to make!  They may end up trying flavor infused spirits over time, but want to get their basic process down before they step too far outside their comfort zone.  Bill also remarked that he enjoys the process of mixing a drink and having the flavors already in there takes out some of the fun and potentially the freshness of flavor. 

Why start a distillery in the small Western Suburb of Waconia?  The basic answer is because most of the people involved live out here and didn't want to move or commute.  I understand that!  In addition to that, it sounds like our local town government has really embraced the idea and worked hard to keep this new small business in our town instead of moving to Minneapolis or St. Paul. 

When asked who would actually be doing the distilling, Bill told me that his brother Matt has had several years of experience working at the Catskill Distilling Company in upstate New York and will be the head distiller for J. Carver.  They have also hired on another local Waconia fellow, Dan Niesen to help out with the process.  Bill also told me that the whole group will work together to come up with ideas for spirits. 

The owners of J. Carver seem ready to embrace the nearby Waconia wineries and breweries as fellow travelers and hope that in time our town will be a destination for fermented and distilled beverage tourists.  I'm already cracking my knuckles and laughing evilly thinking about the potential for wonderful collaborations between these local alcohol producers.  There is still some question about how the distillery will be handling on site sales and tastings.  They do hope to have some local visitor options to try the spirits they produce, but this process is somewhat of a Wild West situation and final decisions are still up in the air.  I did get to see a beautiful dark wood bar under construction during my visit and have high hopes that they are able to use it to full effect! 

Based on this tour and interview with Bill and Gina I have a lot of respect for what they have planned for the J. Carver Distillery.  I think they are coming from a place of true respect for the product and a desire to make a successful new business in the town of Waconia.  I will try to get back in touch with them as things continue along and update my readers with new pictures and information as it becomes available.  Thanks again to Bill and Gina for taking time out of their very busy day for me!

30 Word Thursday: Waves

Sparkling blue waves

Reach for clear cerulean sky

Bright sun glints from metal and glass

Reflective beams throw light and shadow

Perspective and reality skews

Warped river flows 

Upward Icarus

This week's 30 Word Thursday pic was taken right outside the J.W. Marriott hotel in Grand Rapids, MI.  I was struck by the unusual sculpture and had to take pictures!  It turns out that the sculpture was created to commemorate the addition of fluoride to the water supply...talk about a weird subject for art.  As a health professional having seen some terrible teeth over the years, I appreciate the wonders of fluoride as much as the next guy.  Interestingly on a trip to Bend, Oregon last year the whole town was super excited about how they had just removed the evil toxins of fluoride from their water.  If I was a dentist I'd be moving out there right about now...

Check out the other contributors this week (or try it yourself!) at Erin's Treasures Found Blog.

Sour Tasting

John Hayes and Dan Norton from Enki Brewing recently approached me with some questions about sour beers.  Like many even fairly well educated beer drinkers they both felt that their knowledge and ability to judge the sours was not quite where they would like it.  As a BJCP beer judge I really appreciate those who know their beer shortcomings and want to improve on them!  I know several ranked judges who specifically request not to judge these categories of beer simply because they don't like them...to me this is something they should work at and either learn to like them or at least recognize good from bad examples!

I had already been amassing a collection of sour beers after our recent Belgium trip, so this was a perfect time to break some of those out and see if I had the chops to teach others what I know of the sour styles.  I have been thinking of doing a BJCP prep class for the Western Suburbs in the next year or two and this would be a great way to test my skills.  And an excuse to have some great sour beers!

My friend (and sour beer aficionado) Andrew and his wife Janelle joined us for this and contributed some cool beers as well.  John, Dan, Dan's wife (who isn't a beer person at all) and Sj all showed up for the tasting.  We had a few cancellations, and luckily another friend, Jesse, was able to fill in at the last minute!

I tried to start with the more accessible beers, since those are often viewed as "gateway" beers for non-sour drinkers.  We would then move into the more extreme examples.

Flanders Red

We started the grouping with what many would consider the easiest sour beer to handle: Flanders Red.  This style is a mixed fermentation including traditional beer yeast, lactobacillus, pediococcus, acetobacter, and brettanomyces yeast, usually fermented or aged in wooden barrels or foedors.  Also known as the Bergundy of Belgium, these reddish hued ales combine cherry or other dark fruit flavors with a tart or sour bite.  Most of these beers use a blend of older/more sour beer with a younger/less sour beer to get the right balance.  One of the most commonly found examples of this style here in Minnesota is the Duchesse De Borgogne.  This one is very approachable since it's tartness is tempered by back-sweetening, resulting in a sweeter and easier to handle flavor.  I used to really like this beer, but now it seems way too sweet for my palate.  I still have plenty of friends who love the beer, and have no problem with that!

From there we went to a homebrewed example that I brewed up in 2009.  This one has continued to increase in tartness over time, and certainly has more than The Duchesse.  I've been brewing one of these each year since 2008, and my skills are slowly increasing.  With the need to age for such protracted time (a year or so) zeroing in on the right recipe and making changes can take a bit of time!  I haven't quite gotten to the point of blending myself but I'm starting to think this is the way to go!

The third beer we tried was New Glarus Enigma.  This one has aged several years and has more of a tart cherry pie flavor than I remember from when it was fresh.  Still nice, but overall people liked my version better (Eric pats own back here...)

The last beer was the Jolly Pumpkin La Roja that I brought back from our recent trip to Michigan.  This one is not entirely traditional for Belgium, but is very close in style for tasting.  The complexity in the beer is incredible compared to our previous two examples.  Initially most of the unseasoned sour drinkers in the group loved the Duchesse, but by the end of the tasting several liked the Jolly Pumpkin more.

Flanders Brown Ale/Oud Bruin

The Belgian sour brown is really an offshoot of the Flanders Red, but tends to be a bit more mellow and darker in color.  Often these will be back sweetened or blended to have just a touch of acidity or sourness to them.  These beers usually have more dark fruit, raisin, prune, and some caramel or toffee malt flavors to them than the Flanders Red.  These are also often aged for some time and may have a bit of oxidation or sherry character.  There are not many local examples of this style and it hasn't caught on as much with the American craft beer scene yet, though does often act as a base for fruit beers.  I discovered a paper wrapped bottle of Leifman's Goudenband at The Four Firkins that would do nicely here!  This one was a hit with its smoother sourness and I think everyone liked it well.  I have had the chance to try a 20 year old bottle of this beer when in Antwerp that was still amazing.

Gueuze

Gueuze is really usually a blend of three years worth of spontaneously fermented lambics.  I did get a chance to taste some of the young unblended lambic beers in Belgium, but trust me, they get much more complex when blended together with older and more tart beer.  Brussels is the epicenter for this style of beer, but they can be found elsewhere, and now American brewers like Allagash and Jolly Pumpkin are doing their own versions of these beers.  The hot wort is traditionally run into a large flat copper coolship where it cools overnight and gets inoculated with random brewery bacteria.  It is then added to used wooden barrels (where most of the real wild yeast and bacteria reside) and fermented for 1-3 years.

I started here with the Timmermans Oude Gueuze (also from The Firkins).  I had never had this beer before, and expected one that was fairly mellow, based on the sweetness and mediocre sourness levels of the Timmermans fruit lambics I've tried.  It came as a bit of a shock that this beer was incredibly tart, virtually bursting with lemon flavors that made it stand out as very unique amongst geuezes I've tried in the past.

We then tried Andrew's Girardin 1882 which is one of the better and more accessible examples of the style.  This one was more balanced and complex than the Timmermans and is one of my favorites (if I can't find a Cantillon!)  The group was a little more challenged by this style but several still enjoyed the lemon-crazy flavors of the Timmermans.

Fruited Lambics

What most people think of when they hear the word Lambic is slightly tart fruit beers.  The quintessential and most available of these is Lindemans.  They have several flavors, but the Kriek (cherry) and Framboise (raspberry) are the most popular and most traditional.  These, like The Duchesse use a sour beer base, but back sweeten to the point of being nearly syrupy and cloyingly sweet.  The New Glarus Belgian Red and Raspberry Tart are very similar American examples.  I do like these, but after having the more traditional tart versions of these beers I have a harder time dealing with the sweetness.  All of our group (except us seasoned veterans) really enjoyed this beer.  Again--I don't judge!

We moved on to the Boon Marriage Parfait--a more classic Kriek with a much more sour and tart finish.  I really like this beer and find it to have a better balance of cherry flavor, but without the overwhelming sweetness.  This one wasn't as big a hit as I'd expected it to be.

Lastly we tried Andrew's Lindemans Kriek Cuvee Rene.  I had not heard of this beer before, though have tried the base Geueze Cuvee Rene which is quite good.  This is a Kriek that is amazingly different from their above-mentioned sugar-bomb.  I really enjoyed getting a chance to try this rare beer and it proved to me that Lindemans is certainly a good sour producer--even if they make most of their money on overly sweet versions of their beer.

American Sours

This is where it gets weird.  As with anything Americans like to do their own thing.  Follow traditional brewing methods that have been around for hundreds of years?  Nah!  Let's do something different!  Some of our sours are made like in Belgium, but many push the styles into new territory either by methods, ingredients or trying something completely new.  Unfortunately some of these experiments are either ill-conceived or brewing mistakes that are unintentionally sour--giving the rest a bad name.  I've had American sours that are as good or better than some in Belgium.  I've also had travesties that are amongst the worst beers I've ever put in my mouth.  Paint thinner and silage are NOT good flavors in a sour beer!

One of the best examples of great American sours is Cascade Brewing from Portland, OR.  I went to their barrel house tasting room last year and that place blew me away!  Instead of the more common brettanomyces fermentations, they focus on the lactic or acidic/tart styles.  They do various fruit beers like Strawberry, Blueberry, Cherry, but also some unusual strong ales like Vlad the Impaler.  For this event I cracked a two year old Cascade Blueberry that had changed quite a bit since I had it previously.  A lot of the blueberry had faded and a strong smoky phenol flavor had shown up.  I still liked the beer, but it was an entirely different experience for me.  Reviews on this one were positive, but not the overall winner of the day!


We had more to try, but at this point were losing folks.  The guys from Enki ordered us pizza and we had a great time with this event!  I hope that this brought everyone closer to enjoying sours as a broad style--or at least taught them what styles to focus on for their personal taste.  Andrew and I didn't get a chance to crack a few of our other beers so ended up doing that later in the week...perhaps I'll write those up as well.

You Got Coffee In My Beer!

I seem to have accumulated several coffee beers in my trusty beer fridge recently.  Coffee in beer is by no means a new trend, but more breweries are using it these days and are certainly using it better than in the past!  I remember making a coffee stout back in the 1990's, where the recipe called for adding  coffee grounds to the last 15 minutes of the boil.  The resulting bitter and disgusting beer promptly turned me off of the idea for several years.  After learning of the cold-press technique of adding coffee to beers from the brewers at Surly (when tasting one of the first kegs of Surly Bender) I tried doing that myself.  One of my personal homebrewing high points was getting the chance to let John Maier from Rogue try my coffee infused sweet stout at the AHA conference when it was held in Minnesota!  I recently took another try at that recipe and made it to second round of NHC.  Unfortunately the coffee flavor faded by the time second round came along and I didn't win a medal.

I thought I would go through some of the commercial examples of coffee beers.

Lets get one thing straight before we begin--not everyone likes coffee.  I find that a good number of people do, and many brewers appreciate the differences in roast and bean variety, but a fair number of folks just can't stand it.  For many people this may be as simple as not liking that watery bitter brew that is served throughout diners, offices, and hospitals across the USA.  The equivalent in beer would be deciding that you don't like any beer because you can't stand Bud Light.  The variations in coffee can be intimidating but with some experience and education you can learn to appreciate the differences.  I actually roast my own coffee beans from time to time, after Andrew Klosinski did a demonstration for our homebrew club several years back.  I still order my beans from a friend named Sam who runs the quaint Coffee Tree & Tea Leaves in Chicago.  Sam has a blend of light and dark roast coffees named after himself that merges the best of both light and dark into one complex and wonderful brew.  Despite my coffee geekery, I also still appreciate flavored coffee and use cream and sugar in my daily brew.  Because of different tastes (or dislikes) regarding coffee, your agreement with my reviews may vary!  If you haven't had much experience with coffee beers, keep an open mind and maybe try some of my higher rated beers as a starting point.  I find that (like all beers) my favorites tend to be the well balanced ones where the flavors all compliment each other.  However I do enjoy a few that are a bit extreme…

Indeed Burr Grinder:  This is a lower alcohol beer, coming in at 5.1% ABV and 15 IBU.  Indeed has paired with local Northeast Minneapolis neighbor Dogwood Coffee to make this particular beer.  It is infused with ground Colombia El Meridiano coffee before being finished with cold brewed Dogwood NEON.  I've been pretty happy with Indeed's beers and love their Northeast taproom, so I was happy to get to try this one.  The namesake for this beer is the burr grinder, a coffee grinder thought by most coffee aficianados to be the best.  I have cheaper model at home and it certainly improves the coffee consistency versus the blade grinder I used to use.  The beer comes in a 750 ml bottle with an attractive design and wax-dipped top.

Aroma: Bright light roast coffee aroma up front with a bit of sweet malt and caramel.  No hop aroma.  Fairly subtle overall.
Appearance:  Pours a ruby to nearly brown color with excellent clarity.  A fine off-white head that is od medium size.
Flavor:  Strong coffee flavor at the start and really is present throughout the whole tasting process.  Some malt sweetness and toffee flavors balance the astringency of the roasted beans.  This is a lighter bodied beer with an off-dry finish. 
Overall:  A good use of coffee as the star of this beer.  The coffee is fresh and bright tasting without the burnt character that often accompanies the style.  A well balanced creation and very drinkable.  4 out of 5 for me.

Fulton War & Peace:  This is Fulton's Worthy Adversary Imperial Stout aged on whole dark roast coffee beans from Peace Coffee.  The regular version of the stout is O.K. in my book, but not in my favorites.    This is 9.5% ABV, so most definitely a sipper!  The day after Winterfest this year Sj and I hung around Minneapolis and ended up walking into Fulton's tap room randomly on the release day for this beer.  That was a happy experience and we were able to talk with one of the brewer/owners and also try samples of the Peace Coffee they were serving that day.  I bought my allotment of beers that day, but there are still some to be found around the twin cities right now.
Aroma:  Sweet cocoa and roasted dark grains are dominant.  I get a slight yeasty aroma as well.  As it warms I get more coffee and even some dark fruit aromas.
Appearance:  This is nearly opaque and black as night.  A fine tan head that fades quickly.
Flavor:  Sweet malted milk and chocolate up front that drifts off to a bittersweet chocolate off-dry finish.  Dark roast espresso coffee comes in on the second sip and lingers after the finish.  A hint of dark cherry as it warms and some caramel as well. Mouthfeel is a bit lighter than many RIS beers.  The end is nearly astringent.  Mild alcohol warming effect.
Overall:  For me this is Fulton's best beer by far.  The coffee flavors in this ratchet up the complexity and make this far better than the Worthy Adversary.  In a milder beer the dark roast beans would make this astringent and undrinkable, but I think they hit the balance just right for my tastes.  4.5 of 5.

Alesmith Speedway Stout:  This is a 12% ABV Imperial stout, brewed in 2013 and accumulated at Cassanova in Hudson, WI about a month ago.  They include Ryan Brothers Coffee in the beer, but I'm not sure where in the process they add it in.  The web page suggests food pairings and aging of the beer.

Aroma: Milk chocolate with a malty sweetness.  Roasted dark grains and mild fresh coffee aroma.  No hop aroma.  Minimal esters.
Appearance: Poured into a snifter glass (as suggested by the bottle), at 50 degrees F.  Pitch black!  Huge fine head that is nearly auburn in color.  Head is persistent.
Flavor: A burst of expensive dark chocolate up front with a slow fade to a professional coffee shop Mocha, with coffee and chocolate finish.  There is a slight roast bitterness, but this is balanced much more to the sweet side without being cloying.  Alcohol is mild and not distracting.  Mouthfeel is incredibly creamy and smooth.
Overall: This beer has wonderful balance and drinkability despite its high alcohol content.  The coffee is mellow and not the star of this beer, but does add complexity to the beer.  The mouthfeel on this is without peer.  I give this a straight up 5!

Emelisse Espresso Stout:  This is a beer from a craft brewery in Holland.  I tried this at the recommendation of the owner of Café Frape while staying in Maastricht, Netherlands this spring.  I was not sure what to expect but ended up with one of the most "American" style beers I had during my whole trip.  This was an Imperial Stout clocking in at around 10% ABV.  I don't know much about the beer since the website is in Dutch!  This one had a strong sweet Russian Imperial style base, with a lot of roast malt presence.  I could pick up dark roasted coffee, but it bordered on the astringent side.  A great beer, but the coffee could have been a bit more balanced with the beer.  4/5.

Flying Dog Kujo:  This is a 8.9% ABV Imperial Stout, brewed with Black Dog Coffee out of Summit Point West Virginia.  I have really not loved Flying Dog beers in the past, but one of the guys from the Four Firkins opened one for me to try and I'm a convert!   I brought a couple home for more intense "study". 

Aroma:  Cinnamon, milk chocolate, roasted grains.  Sweetened condensed milk and light roast coffee as it warms up.

Appearance:  Deep black in color.  Rich dark tan to brown head.  Head fades to sides of glass fairly quickly.

Flavor:  There is very bright and flavorful coffee up front in the beer.  The initial smack in the face of coffee fades to a semi-sweet chocolate flavor and a bitter finish.  There is a bit of grain sweetness, but the coffee is strong in this one and dries the beer out.  The roast seems lighter, with a zippiness and lack of burnt flavor I tend to note in darker roasts.  This beer has a rich and creamy mouthfeel. 

Overall:  This is outstanding!  An incredible use of coffee, where the beer is elevated by it and not over-run by it.  Also a great base beer.  5/5!

Evil Twin Imperial Doughnut Break:  This is a brewery that has only recently come the Minnesota market and I'm still trying to get a handle on their beers.  This is an 11.5% ABV Imperial porter with coffee and "natural flavorings".

Aroma: Dark, almost burnt coffee aroma.  Sweetness, chocolate, and a lot of alcohol.  Hints of cinnamon as it warms.

Appearance: Deep black and oil-like with legs on the glass.  Dark tan to almost full brown head that persists well for such a high gravity beer.  Opaque.

Flavor:  Sweet at first but not cloying.  Mild brown sugar and cinnamon flavors in the middle.  The finish is fairly dry and borders on too astringent.  The coffee flavor mimics the aroma--dark espresso, almost charred.  Mouthfeel is thick.  Semi-sweet chocolate at finish as it warms up more. 4/5

Surly Coffee Bender:  I couldn't do a coffee beer write up without including one of the most easily accessible (and one of the very first available) coffee beers in Minnesota.  As mentioned above, I remember tasting one of the very first versions of this at a Surly beer dinner at North Coast Restaurant nearly 7 years ago.  At that time they were adding coffee beans directly to a small keg of Bender and only serving it at special events.  Now they are canning this beer and one can find it all over.  Looking back at that first time--the incredible coffee aroma and flavors--I still smile!  Bender is a brown ale, brewed with oats, that doesn't quite fit any BJCP beer style.  Add coffee and it just gets more interesting.  My thanks to Derek Allmendinger for giving me this one--I actually haven't had one of these in about 2 years!

Aroma: Very strong medium to light roast coffee right away.  Earthy, smooth, roasted.  This strikes me as the aroma of cold-press coffee and is quite intense.  Light chocolate notes and a hint of sugar sweetness as it warms and the initial SMACK of coffee fades.

Appearance: Deep brown, but not black.  Ruby highlights at edges and clarity is slightly hazy.  Fine off-white head that fades slowly.

Flavor: Smack-you-in-the-face fresh cold-press coffee.  Almost like drinking a lighter iced mocha.  The coffee is quite strong up front, and continues through-out the entire taste--changing as it hits different areas of the tongue and palate.  There is some mild malt sweetness, but the coffee does dry this beer out compared to regular Bender.  There is a lingering coffee and dry cocoa flavor on the finish and a light astringency.

Overall: A very good beer that uses the coffee to its utmost.  The base beer gets lost a bit in this intense coffee flavor, but is a nice vehicle for it.  4/5