Meridian begins with hints of wheat and toasted malt on its nose, with a fair amount of tannish head and considerable lacing as one starts into their first sip. The toastiness of this malt expands as one takes that first quaff, with subsequent pulls bringing a bit more bitterness into the mix. There is a rich body and a thicker mouthfeel to Meridian than other similar dry / irish stouts on the market. Ecliptic’s desire to ramp things up here stops the brew from moving into a too-sweet end; the overall flavor profile initially enjoyed at the onset is replicated to near-perfection by the time one hits the bottle for the final rodeo.
Meridian would be a solid pairing with strongly-flavored meats (smoked fare, boudin, prosciutto) as well as region-specific fare including dishes from the middle east and North Africa. Nuts and cheeses would also be highlighted to great success if matched with Meridian.
For those looking for a stout that has a bit more complexity than many of the cooler standards in a similar style, Meridian should be what you search out. We’d love it if Ecliptic decides to put some of this stout into bourbon barrels for a bit and release toward the beginning of 2021. Our fingers are crossed.
We’ve previously covered Ecliptic’s Orange Giant barleywine and Five Years / Five Beers (Hazy Double IPA) a few years back.
Meridian Vanilla Stout (Ecliptic Brewing) / Irish-Style Stout / 5.2% ABV / Facebook / Twitter
