Beer of the Week

The beer: French Toast Imperial Ale

The brewery: Southern Tier Brewing Company, Lakewood, New York

Description (from the website): "Toasted, sweet caramel malts blend into notes of maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg to replicate the flavors of French Toast. The addition of Milk Sugar creates a creamy, sweet full-bodied beer that balances the complex malt bill. The finished beer is a brunch-inspired treat that will remind you of digging into a plate of fresh French Toast!"

Would I buy it again? There's often an issue with these kinds of imperial ales: The abundance of sweet ingredients crowd each other out and the beer ends up tasting like nothing. A sweet nothing, to be sure, but very distinctly not whatever sweet food the beer is trying to emulate. Happily, that isn't the case here. The initial taste is distinctly cinnamon-y, with the maple syrup coming in at the end. Those are the two big ingredients in any good French toast, so it's mission accomplished on this. It manages to be good and capture French toast's distinct flavor; I'd absolutely buy this beer again.