Nisperos De Batata - Pipeworks Brewing Company

emerge077

Illinois

3.99/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Picked this up from Beer Temple. Served in a fluted glass.

Murky muddy orange brown color, yellow highlights around the edges. Little to no lace, a thin compact head on the first pour.

Enticing aroma of vanilla, clove, cinnamon, almost a pumpkin pie suggestion, but with a unique twist from the sweet potato. Similar flavors, the spices carry it along nicely with some toasted coconut and sweet potato flavors coming through. Medium bodied, the carbonation begins to ebb halfway through. Dry finish, some light balanced sweetness initially.

Overall this is a pretty unique idea for a beer, and successfully executed. If you're still jonesing for a mid-winter pumpkin beer, this is your huckleberry.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2013 02:49:32 | More by emerge077

prender1482

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +18.1%

05-18-2013 00:34:23 | More by prender1482

imperialking

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -2.8%

05-10-2013 17:20:15 | More by imperialking

ZombiesAteMyDog

Indiana

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%

04-30-2013 15:27:36 | More by ZombiesAteMyDog

rhoadsrage

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

(Served in a tulip glass)
Batch #7
A- This beer pours a murky caramel body with ¾ of the glass full of rocky beige head that last a good bit. There is a strong carbonation of tiny bubbles boiling to the surface.

S- The flinty aroma has a light spice cinnamon quality with a raw coconut hint turning into a cherry syrup quality in the finish.

T- The odd mix of sweet nougat with some clove and caramel hint is muddled with a starchy hint of sweet potato. There is a dry woody spice taste in the finish which is a bit dry in itself.

M- The medium-light mouthfeel has a scrubbing fizz in the finish but no alcohol heat noticed.

O- The flavors are drab and all muddled together and it doesn’t really have any stand out malt or hop of spice flavors. Even a bit of alcohol would help add some character to this beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2013 18:32:05 | More by rhoadsrage

oN3xM

Illinois

1.71/5  rDev -52.5%
look: 1.75 | smell: 1.75 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Poured a 22 oz. bomber slowly into 2 separate pint glasses. First glass had a clearer, yet still cloudy, deep brown color. Second glass was much more cloudy (due to the sediment resting at the bottom of the bottle). This review is based on the first glass.

A - A musty, dark caramel brown appearance with lots of carbonation. Foamy head, but dissipates quickly.
S - Spicy, herbal aroma with hints of cinnamon and clove. The description sounds pleasant, but the smell itself is not very appealing.
T - First sip left impressions of strong alcoholic tastes, but was followed by a clove-y herbal after taste.
M - Thick, foamy feel. A slight burn on the tongue and roof of the mouth.
O - Description on the bottle reads "Inspired by the Puerto Rican dessert of the same name, this ale is brewed with the dishes' core ingredients; sweet potatoes, cinnamon, clove, vanilla, and toasted coconut, and is an equatorial delight". The cinnamon and clove tastes are so pronounced that it drowns out any presence of vanilla or coconut (which I was most looking forward to) on the palate and makes it almost undrinkable. Not a beer I would buy again; drain-poured after reviewing.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 20:03:31 | More by oN3xM

emyers

Illinois

3.66/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz. bottle poured into a Founders snifter. Batch #89.

Appearance: Pours a murky rust color with a thin beige head, which dissipated quickly into lacing.

Smell: CInnamon and clove are very strong up front, with distinct sweet potato aroma and some vanilla and caramel. Smells rich and heavy. I'm not getting the coconut as much, but there's a lot going on here.

Taste: Very big on the spices, rich caramel, sweet potato. It comes of like an imperial pumpkin ale (with sweet potato instead of pumpkin, of course). Still not really picking up the coconut. There's a bittering hop bite on the finish that's a little weird when combined with the spiced dessert beer-type flavor profile.

Mouthfeel: Not quite as heavy as I would expect from the flavor profile. I'd call it medium bodied, with a very noticeable carbonation.

Overall: Between this and the Pastrami on Rye, Pipeworks definitely puts out some bizarre stuff from time to time (which I love). This is a very interesting beer and I'm certainly glad I bought it, but it doesn't quite impress me as much as the Pastrami on Rye did.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 02:00:21 | More by emyers

IPx

Illinois

3/5  rDev -16.7%

03-29-2013 07:17:36 | More by IPx

egrace84

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9.7%

03-24-2013 21:54:12 | More by egrace84

Sparky44

Illinois

4/5  rDev +11.1%

03-23-2013 18:58:23 | More by Sparky44

auggie

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%

03-19-2013 00:45:10 | More by auggie

BeerOps

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%

03-12-2013 01:16:10 | More by BeerOps

BlakeAM

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -2.8%

03-11-2013 23:56:46 | More by BlakeAM

NSK79

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%

03-05-2013 02:36:47 | More by NSK79

Lognar

Illinois

3.6/5  rDev 0%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.5

Look - Cloudy light brown like a mud puddle, or fresh pressed apple cider if I am being generous. No head at all. No carbonation.

Nose - Lots of sweetness. Totally apple cider. Disappointing though. With all those spices that go into this, I was expecting a huge nose. This needs carbonation badly.

Taste - Spice and sweet potato all the way. Exactly as advertised with sweet potato, cinnamon, clove, and vanilla. However, the flavor is a jumble of all these ingredients, so it tastes like Thanksgiving desert. The finish is a slight hop bitterness mixed with spices.

Feel - Medium towards thin body. Leaning towards thin.

Overall - Eh. Everything this brew does is better done by a number of Fall seasonals/pumpkin beers. If you really want a spice/pumpkinish beer in the Winter then go for it, but if you can get any of the good pumpkin beers out there then get them and skip this. This was more like a cider than a beer. If it had any carbonation at all it would have been much better because I think it would have brought the flavors more to the forefront.

Serving type: bottle

02-18-2013 04:47:30 | More by Lognar

Florida9

Illinois

3.63/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Semi translucent, yet incredibly hazy, medium brown-gray effluent colored liquid. Barely forms any head. No lacing. Damn! This is one ugly looking beer.

S: Aroma is pure Thanksgiving. Apple cider, sweet potato, cinnamon, and clove. Sweet creamy and inviting.

T: Taste is similar to the aroma. Sweet cherry cola, sweet potato, caramel, brown sugar. Some light, sweet baking spices. Quick, apple juice finish.

M: Medium bodied. Sweet and slick. No bitterness. Low carbonation.

O: A decent beer. Flavorful and sweet; very dessert like. However, while the flavors of this beer might make a nice dessert, as a beer, its not much more than a novelty. Never the less, a decent drink that I enjoyed but probably wouldn't revisit.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2013 01:34:04 | More by Florida9

Treebs

Illinois

3.7/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

22 oz. bottle served in a Pipeworks snifter. Batch #71.

A: Pours a murky burnt orange color, reminiscent of apple cider. An off white head forms on the pour and recedes quickly to thin collar. Light splotches of lace are left down the glass.

S: Cinnamon, starchy sweet potato and light clove. Sweet malt body.

T: More cinnamon and clove up front. The vanilla sweetness come up a little more in the middle with the some sweet malts. The finish has that semi-sweet and starchy sweet potato taste to round it out. As it warms up the toasted coconut comes out.

M: Medium bodied with a medium low carbonation level. The finish has just a hint of sweetness and more spice.

O: I enjoyed this one. I could have used a little more carbonation and the look left something to be desired, but overall the cinnamon and clove blended nicely with the sweetness from the vanilla and sweet potato.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2013 22:26:02 | More by Treebs

zach60614

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9.7%

01-27-2013 01:16:05 | More by zach60614

spycow

Illinois

4/5  rDev +11.1%

01-27-2013 00:12:47 | More by spycow

Nachos4two

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9.7%

01-25-2013 21:28:25 | More by Nachos4two

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.95/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Served in a Lagunitas mason jar.

"Sweet potato-bearing trees"? Well, leave it to beer to introduce me to dessert dishes previously unknown. This stuff pours a murky sienna-cider topped by a half-finger of cream foam. The nose comprises clove, vanilla bean, cinnamon, light toasted coconut, and a vague sense of gooey caramel. The taste brings in more of the same, with the coconut and clove taking precedence. There's a hint of sweet potato looming ethereally in the background, but it never fully expresses itself. The vanilla rules the aftertaste with a sweet fist of iron. The body is a light-leaning medium, with a very light moderate carbonation and a fluid feel. Overall, a very nice brew, one that shows what you can do with a strategic use of sweet potatoes. Good times.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2013 16:19:23 | More by TMoney2591

DooshBagalow

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9.7%

01-21-2013 03:15:09 | More by DooshBagalow

AgentZero

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -2.8%

01-20-2013 01:05:16 | More by AgentZero

MasterSki

Illinois

3.91/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Bottle from Binny's Lincoln Park.

A - Light orange foam settles to a thin collar, wisps on top, and a few stray splotches of lace. Hazed yam-colored body.

S - The aroma reminds me of a lot of pumpkin ales, but with a twist to it. Pie crust, vanilla, and cinnamon are suggestive of pumpkin beers, but there's a touch of toasted coconut and marzipan as well. This lends credence to my theory that it's pretty difficult to perceive pumpkin in beers, as sweet potato lends a similar nebulous starchiness. In any case, a pretty good take on this style of beer. Good depth and balance.

T - The taste isn't quite as convincing. There's a bit more starchy sweet potato and a bit less sweet malt flavor, with notes of bread, caramel, and vanilla in the periphery. More clove spice in the finish, and as it warms up there's a bit of alcohol presence.

M - Texture is similarly starchy, with a lightly sticky finish. Medium-bodied, with low-to-moderate carbonation, and no alcohol burn accompanying the aforementioned note in the flavor. Perhaps a tad watery.

D - For a January 'pumpkin'-style beer this was pretty enjoyable. Not normally something I'd drink, but it was fun as a change of pace. 22oz is a bit too much for one person, but this could easily be shared 2-3 ways.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2013 23:05:57 | More by MasterSki

4DAloveofSTOUT

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +4.2%

01-18-2013 19:53:39 | More by 4DAloveofSTOUT