Impact
Disjointed & dysfunctional: COLD cocks an unripe green & stale confabulation of woes. Parallels East Coast USA mountains, all downhill in the worst way starting with frigid lifts, uneven, ice-ragged slopes, & skank aprés-ski featuring hot cocoa / hard-roasted coffee to compensate for the "experience".
Appearance 4.6 / 5
gloating Darth Vadar
gloating Darth Vadar
| Color: | pitch brown w/ black squid ink |
| Surface: | |
| Temper: | hi-beam |
| Snap: | tight thwap; air bubbles inside |
Aroma 5.8 / 10
concentric circles flattened in parched butter: outer ring nuts (peanut); middle grains (toast w/ green olive); the interior muted spice petals (cinnamon, frangipani, sunflower)
Mouthfeel 8.7 / 15
| Texture: | slow-going; dry |
| Melt: | austere |
Flavor 29.4 / 50
black cake -> cool cocoa mint -> fig -> molasses -> frangipani + orange dominate mid palate -> takes a turn for the worst w/ a joy-killer: musty, dried vanilla & gentian root + white pepper create havoc -> grain stack (rice, corn, & cotton seed) squashes dirty bitters & feeble acids underneath -> cocoa re-establishes -> flat bitter walnut end
Quality 9.2 / 20
Strange hybrid action; barely qualifies as Nacional. Lives up to Ecuador's rep for oft-shoddy harvesting, in this case probably regionalized around Los Rios (tell-tale fig notes). Improperly dried (taste the crust formations), green (slightly under-fermented); espresso-style roast goes to unsuccessfully cover-up.