Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul is a 5% New England Sweet Stout IPA from Kiuchi Brewery. It’s part of their Brew Base lineup and can be found in cans and also on tap in a limited number of bars. Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul is brewed using pale malt, wheat malt, crystal malt, dextrin malt, black patent malt, chocolate malt, and flaked oats. It also contains several adjuncts in the form of lactose, vanilla beans, and cacao. At the time of writing, it’s unknown if Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul is a one-off or if it will be made again. Due to the high amount of adjuncts, Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul is classified as a happoshu as the malt makes up only 73% of the grain bill.
Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul Aroma and Taste
Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul poured out a thick black colour with a thin amount of tan-like head on top, that collapsed fast on itself. Unsurprisingly, it had a huge creamy and vanilla nose, with it resembling a flavoured latte, and lashings of chocolate. There was a hint of oatiness to it as well, but the lemony nose to it was a bit weird. I guess the best way to describe Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul would be that it smelt like someone had dumped a load of chocolate milkshake into a load of vanilla milkshake, and then shaken the container up.
And that idea continues right into the body of the beer. A thick gloopy body with it veering between a hoppy milk stout and a milkshake IPA – with the lemon clashing with the vanilla and then the black malts, followed up with some chocolate, and just to really throw things even more into a mess, some coffee and cream. (Remember to breathe!) – it’s almost as if the brewers behind this beer and just pulled out as many flavours from a hat and then decided to make a beer. There was a slight oaty graininess to Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul as well, with the yeast bringing a subtle prune-like flavour to it. So much going on in Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul that it was, at times, a cacophony of flavours.
Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul The Bottom Line
Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul wasn’t as bad as the name suggests – but it’s just a chocolate milkshake IPA.
Where to Buy Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul
Hitachino Nest Chocolate Soul can be bought online at the following places:
It can also be bought at branches of Seijo Ishii.
