An old friend with a new twist. More from Stone.

12 oz bottle, purchased as a single in raleigh, NC.

Pour is, as expected, robust. A reddish brown hue breaks the black monotony. Head is light but has good depth. Not much retention or lace, but the beer seems solid.

Nose seems quite sweet without ever being especially vanilla based. If anything, the vanilla element seems to enhance the smoke.

The tastes are certainly well integrated, but never especially “vanilla” in their manifestation. Light smoke with a tiny bit of vanilla sweetness up front, and then it fades to the smokiness that one generally associates with the beer.

Tasty if not spectacular, and not especially different to the original.