Crème Brûlée
Southern Tier Brewing Company

Crème BrûléeCrème Brûlée
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From:
Southern Tier Brewing Company
 
New York, United States
Style:
Sweet / Milk Stout
Ranked #400
ABV:
10%
Score:
88
Ranked #14,450
Avg:
3.92 | pDev: 17.35%
Reviews:
1,509
Ratings:
4,730
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 23, 2024
Added:
Jul 12, 2008
Wants:
  432
Gots:
  1,144
Part of the Blackwater Series

The brewer suggests a serving temperature of 42 °F for this beer.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by mrasskicktastic:
Photo of mrasskicktastic
Reviewed by mrasskicktastic from New Jersey

1.83/5  rDev -53.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5
A - Very dark brown brew pour with almost no head and no lacing.

S - Smells like vanilla custard and burnt sugar. They deliver on this creme brûlée thing for sure... The vanilla is very pungent. Placing your nose near the beer is almost nauseating. It's a struggle, but underneath the vanilla, I detect faint hints of blueberries. It is . . . unique.

T - Immediately, it presents with a very acrid bitterness. The flavor is of extremely intense vanilla, custard and caramelized sugar. Underneath this, there is charred malt. Aftertaste is really, really bitter, but it is a caustic, medicinal sort of bitterness - not at all pleasant. Along with the bitterness is lingering vanilla. Unlike a lot of beers, the sweetness and bitterness don't play nice. They make for a startlingly unpleasant brew. I really just hate the taste of this.

M - Smooth, but with high carbonation, medium bodied, a little refreshing, but the bitterness prevents that from shining.

D - Ugh. My tongue feels like it was just beaten with a vanilla bat. I commend Southern Tier for brewing this, it delivers enough creme brûlée that one feels the beer has delivered true to its name. However, I don't like it. It is just narrowly above drain pour for me. With a lot less vanilla and a lot less of that gross medicinal bitterness, this could be a tasty brew, but it is too over-the-top to enjoy.

Edit: I almost ended up pouring this down the drain, but I found that it meshes strangely well with peanut butter. As long as you don't accidentally smell it, drinking this while eating peanut butter is kind of pleasant.
Jun 24, 2012
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.21 by Iggy88 from Ohio

Feb 23, 2024
 
Rated: 4.1 by BLVBBERGIXLL from Arizona

Feb 19, 2024
Photo of brianstrong2
Reviewed by brianstrong2 from Tennessee

4.33/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Very good, I miss this beer not being sold as not nitro. I'm sure that is still an option in Buffalo, but locally that is all I get. Texture, flavor, abv, head, all exceptional. Highly recommend.

That said, Southern Tier in my opinion is one of the few breweries in the US that I trust to pump out impeccable imperial / sweet stouts. Flavors are spot on and they don't push 15%ers that taste like whisky and chocolate syrup.
Feb 16, 2024
 
Rated: 4.19 by BuxMontBeerLover from Pennsylvania

Feb 12, 2024
Photo of cwm51662
Reviewed by cwm51662 from Indiana

4.31/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Slight tan head that's gone quick. Strong vanilla/caramel smell out the bottle, almost coconut-ty. Not quite as thick a feel as I like, but close, and not sticky for all the sweet. A bit boozy, but not badly. Pretty tasty. Custard and coffee and a shot of firewater in the cup, lol!
Dec 29, 2023
 
Rated: 3.91 by blissfulNemo from Michigan

Dec 13, 2023
 
Rated: 3.52 by not2quick from Missouri

Dec 07, 2023
 
 
Photo of Cm55
Reviewed by Cm55

3.94/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Bottle
L- dark, nearly black. Tan head is minimal
S-plenty of caramel but not much else
T-caramel, some nondescript sweetness that lacks any type of candi sugar
F-smooth and without any bite to suggest its 10abv
O-a bit one-note as it delivers on the caramel, but is a very drinkable, high abv specialty beer that matches the label.
Nov 22, 2023
 
Rated: 3.64 by Taenim from Maine

Nov 07, 2023
 
Rated: 3.25 by sewerchewer from New York

Nov 06, 2023
 
Rated: 4.1 by RalphStanley34 from French Polynesia

Oct 26, 2023
 
 
Rated: 3.79 by carolinabeerguy from North Carolina

Jan 04, 2023
Photo of mvanaskie13
Reviewed by mvanaskie13 from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured into a chalice: color is black, head is light tan and presents with the nitro super fine bubbles on that initial pour.

Smell is lightly boozy upfront, quickly overtaken by the creaminess - big lactose, really has that creamy aroma, some backing chocolate and roast.

Taste is similar but the booziness is a backing flavor: big cream, lactose, lighter chocolate, some roast, booze. Flavor really emanates a thick cocktail like flavor.

Mouthfeel is low nitro effervescence, strong/thick creamy sweetness, limited bitterness and even limited drying from the strength.

Overall a big, creamy sweet brew that gives off a creamy cocktail vibe (white russian-esque).
Apr 05, 2022
Photo of KT3418
Reviewed by KT3418 from Colorado

3.84/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This is just sweeter than the hot cocoa one but that's really about the whole super prevalent difference. I feel like trying this one made me like them both a little less. Sweet, boozy, run of the mill. Southern Tier is super overrated as a whole to me. There's great desert beers and pastry stouts everywhere. Try something new. I will say this shits on their ipas in the since these are better at being stouts than the ipas are at being ipas. At least this is supposed to be sweet.
Feb 27, 2022
Photo of JohnniEMc
Reviewed by JohnniEMc from Pennsylvania

4.62/5  rDev +17.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
Experience says that this is among the best of the desert beers. Now it's time for a critical review. Two twelve ounce cans are opened and all of the contents of one and most of the contents of the second can are fitted instead a clear glass Imperial pint mug. There's an amazing vanilla smell in the air and the beige head, preventing the entire drainage of the second can, is one of the tightest and enduring in the beer world. It adorns a beautiful black coffee colored liquid that's opaque, but reasonably bright. Behind the sharp vanilla nose hit, found is creamy sweetness, kind of like the smell gotten from an aerosol whipped cream. For its color, there's very little reference to roasted malt. There is some roasted malt bitterness in the taste. So much so that it detracts from the intended target. But, it's a mild infraction, as there's enough smooth and creamy character to carry most of the taste. Actually the stout bitterness doesn't really kick until the finish. Until then, this is an amazing liquid reminder of a pleasantly sweet desert, without the crusty covering. There's great glass lacing and a well disguised 10% ABV. Maybe not perfect, but this is one great desert beer.
Nov 26, 2021
 
Rated: 4.42 by chrisb53188 from Wisconsin

Oct 13, 2021
Crème Brûlée from Southern Tier Brewing Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 4730 ratings