Why evening? Well, with a name like "Sunset Coffee" Golden Road's oatmeal milk stout seems to be a beer to be enjoyed at the end of the day. So that's exactly what I'm doing.

Golden Road Brewing, the About page for which is here, is celebrating its sixth anniversary this year; which, of course, means that it was founded in 2011. It was then that Meg Gill and Tony Yanow put their heads together to bring a hop-focused brewery to LA's beer scene. For the last six years Golden Road has been bringing some killer IPAs to the market (Wolf Pup, their session IPA, is my current favorite of the style). Apart from the more hoppy offerings from the brewery, you can also find a wide array of other styles and flavors, some seasonal and some just made whenever. 

The beer at hand this evening is definitely within that wider array. Unfortunately, it has no presence on the brewery's website. But that's really no big deal because I can find all the relevant information on its can. It's an oatmeal milk stout (meaning it's brewed with lactose), coffee was utilized in the brewing process, and it has an ABV of 5.5%. 

The beer's bouquet definitely lives up to its apt description. It's deep, roasty coffee. Sure, part of that roastiness can be attributed to the fact that this is an oatmeal stout. But I'm willing to bet that most of the aroma's coffee comes (shocker!) from the coffee used in the stout's brewing. Maybe that coffee is why Purrl only gave it three whiffs before jumping down from her windowsill. 

Flavorwise, Sunset Coffee mirrors it's aroma nearly perfectly. It's roasty coffee through and through. But, due to the milk in this oatmeal milk stout, it's slightly sweeter than it's nose makes it out to be. 

And, true to the style, this stout is thick and creamy. It's obvious that this is a beer. A full beer.

A few years ago a derecho tore through Ohio. The year after that I spent the summer in Athens. We were supposed to get another derecho coming through so, like any self-respecting college town denizens, my buddies and I decided to hit up some bars during the storm. 

Long story short, the storm wasn't all it was made out to be. But that didn't matter because the night was great. We saw some really drunk dudes pressing themselves onto the side of a building to hide from the people they were with while the rain was pouring down. One of my friends got confused about the definition of a word and had to run outside to ask strangers for clarity (I was totally the cause of his confusion). We closed down the bars and then stayed out for food. It was the best derecho ever. And that's what Sunset Coffee brings to my mind. 

You know what? Waiting until sunset to drink Golden Road's Sunset Coffee was the right decision. This is a great beer and, although it may not introduce anything new to the style, it showcases what this kind of beer can be. I'm giving it an 9.0/10. Grab it if you can.