Appearance

The Collective Arts Stranger Than Fiction is packaged in a tall can, black background, with a picture of a man on his back with a microphone in his hand. Stranger Than Fiction is on the front of the beer can in white font. The beer pours a dark black with a tan colored fluffy head of medium thickness.

Aroma

Nosing the beer, I pick up aromas of sweet malts, coffee and chocolate. The nose is pleasant with no one aroma dominating another.

Flavor

The beer starts out with an enjoyable sweet creaminess, with some chocolate and coffee layers underneath. As the beer warms up, the sweetness and chocolate increases in intensity, while the coffee falls more to the finish as a background note. Like the nose, the flavors here are pleasant, but there isn’t anything distinct or specific that makes it stand out in the Porter category.

Balance

The balance here is good. The sweetness, chocolate and coffee are all well balanced. Even as the beer warms up and the coffee becomes more of a background accent, it is still not overpowering or underwhelming on the palate.

Finish

The finish is initially a combination of coffee and chocolate with a medium length finish. As the beer warms up, the chocolate is more present on the main tasting profile, with the coffee being the primary driver on the finish.

Overall

Even though I rated the aroma and flavor average, the overall beer presents as a good experience. The flavor components are enjoyable, and I wouldn’t hesitate to grab another Collective Arts Stranger Than Fiction in a can or if it was available on tap.

John McTavish

SCORE

5.75

Cost/Point

$0.42

Scoring System

Personal Beer Review: Collective Arts Stranger Than Fiction