Vocation – Selection Box 2022

Posted byJ.S HarrisonPosted in12 + 12 Beers Of Christmas 2022Tags:, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Welcome back to the Eternal Hoptimist’s

Today is the first day of The Eternal Hoptimist Advent Calendar for 2022, but before we get the show on the road. We, have a Selection box from Vocation Brewery to satisfy our sweet tooth!

All five of these beers have Naughty & Nice as a base beer, with added goodies to make it a true ‘Celebration’ for this time of year! As this was going to be quite the taste session and the beers ranging from 6-10% (left to right) I reached out to my friend Stuart who helped share the load and even did a few guest reviews!

Which of these chocolatey numbers do you think we will like best? my money is on the Milky Way… Let’s find out!..

First up is the malted honeycomb chocolate stout. A.K.A the Malteser vocation, Stuart eager to step up took this one, let’s see what he thought!

  1. Name: Malted honeycomb chocolate stout 6% ABV
  2. Brewery: Vocation
  3. Aroma:  Heavy Malt, with mellow chocolate notes.
  4. Appearance: Dark with a coffee head when poured
  5. Body:  Medium to full boiled, poor head retention, but well carbonated
  6. Taste: Mellow chocolate, not too sweet definite malt background with a slight hint of caramel giving it a smidge of sweetness.

Certainly, doesn’t taste like a 6% beer. It’s very light for a stout, in fact I believe it should be a new benchmark for chocolate stout, it has a rock-solid foundation which is not too sweet but delivers on flavour. in fact, I think it’s the best stout I have had all year so far.

The only thing is I don’t think it tastes like Maltesers, malty yes, Maltesers no.

Our overall rating: 4.2 / 5.0

  1. Name: Whipped Nougat Chocolate Stout 7% ABV
  2. Brewery: Vocation
  3. Aroma: Sweet Baileys with a slight maltiness
  4. Appearance: Dark with a coffee head
  5. Body:  Medium to full bodied, well carbonated with good head retention.
  6. Taste: A wash of lactose, which teaks into a sweet mouthful with a hint of malt.

This one doesn’t taste like a milky way, but it is lactose heavy and has an alcoholic kick which is what you would expect from 7%. It was pleasant but I was disappointed with this one as the Milkway is the shining jewel in a box of celebrations, but I found this one lacked flavour and didn’t deliver on what it promised.

Our overall rating: 3.7/ 5.0

  1. Name: Caramel Cookie, Chocolate Stout 8% ABV
  2. Brewery: Vocation
  3. Aroma: Very sweet caramel, and a hint of biscuit
  4. Appearance: A very dark beer with a tight white head.
  5. Body:  Medium to heavy bodied, well carbonated, with okay head retention.
  6. Taste: Very sweet taste, but low lactose notes and a hint of biscuit and a bitter aftertaste of dark chocolate.

Another one that doesn’t taste like its promised design. it’s incredibly sweet, and the aftertaste is a little jarring given its sweetness. Definitely the weakest in the selection so far.

Our overall rating: 3.2/ 5.0

  1. Name: Roasted peanut, caramel chocolate stout 9% ABV
  2. Brewery:  Vocation
  3. Aroma: Very sweet nougat scent with a hint of Chocolate
  4. Appearance: Dark with a slightly off-white tight head.
  5. Body:  Medium to full bodied, good carbonation with good head retention.
  6. Taste: Very sweet chocolatey notes but lacks depth, it has a slight nutty aftertaste.

I think there is a reason that they don’t make roasted peanut stouts… and this this probably it. It was not overly pleasant, but it was drinkable, it’s uninteresting but it does taste more like a Snickers, than the previous one did a Twix.

Our overall rating: 3.1/ 5.0

  1. Name: Coconut milk, Chocolate Imperial Stout 10% ABV
  2. Brewery: Vocation
  3. Aroma: a clean scent of coconut with lactose and chocolate backing
  4. Appearance: Dark with a tight slightly brown head.
  5. Body:  Medium, well carbonated. good head retention.
  6. Taste: Strong hit of a desiccated coconut, followed by a refreshing wash of cold hot chocolate.

This one was a silver lining compared to the last three. It was tasty, sweet and morish. Alot of people turn their noses up at coconut and chocolate but this one certainly isn’t to be sniffed at.

Our overall rating: 4.0/ 5.0

So, it turns out that the one we liked the most was the Malteser one! that one took me by surprise! If you have had the chance to try these one’s, please let us know which ones you liked best. These are definitely beers for a chocoholic and those for a sweet tooth! Make sure you drink responsibly and have your insulin on standby!

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