Temptation can be the prelude to a downfall, but in this case I can't recommend succumbing to it enough.
This collaboration between Vocation and Brew York is the stuff even the most hedonistic beerhead would dream of; luxurious chocolate and caramel flavours in a thick and creamy body.
Chocolate, caramel and stout are a very popular trio, featuring often in stouts from breweries all over the world. Similar stouts we've reviewed include:
My Continuous Improvement #4: Chocolate Orange from Cloudwater
Dusty Miller Stout from Overtone
Rocky Road Ice Cream from Amundsen
It smells like a chocolate milkshake, basically. Creamy, sweet and rich on the nose; it's followed through into the pour which shows off the thick body despite the relatively low strength for a stout.
The texture is like a milkshake too. Not a thick one, but definite creaminess and a big body that is full of sweet chocolate flavours with a touch of malt to it to help balance it out a little.
The caramel sweetness is somewhat overridden by the chocolate until the latter part of the profile, when you get a more sickly sweet flavour with the toffee notes of the caramel.
The finish is actually quite in-chocolatey, leaving more of a caramel flavour in your mouth rather than the rich chocolate one.
It feels luxurious, with a rippling satin effect on the chocolate-coloured background that makes up almost all the label. The only parts that aren't chocolate coloured are two lines at the top and bottom and the text, which are all caramel/gold coloured.
It looks classy in the high-class kind of way. Like a piece of art that would be in a mansion hallway or a colourscape used by an interior designer to add 'flow' to a room, or some nonsense.
The golden text itself is very effective at adding further style to the can, with the information on the back sticking to the same brown/gold colour scheme. It's a great can, but I don't feel worthy enough to own it.
If you want to get involved with this high-class drinking then you can add Sweet Temptation to your waitlist on Honest Brew, where you'll pay £3.49 for it when it comes into stock.
We got ours from our local Morrison's in their well-reputed beer aisle, so it's definitely worth checking out there first.
