Imperial Stout by Tro Ales #OTTBeerDiary Day 130

This post is a part of the 2015 New Beer Every Day Beer Diary Challenge, #ottbeerdiary.  Over the course of 2015, I will be trying a new beer every day. Please read the background in the link above, and enjoy reading about the most recently tasted beers below. If you’d like to join the challenge as well, let me know in the comments below, and be sure to check out Grown-up Travel Guide and his #grownupbeerdiary, where Andy Higgs came up with the diary format in use below. You can catch up on all of our posts as part of the challenge under the tag ottbeerdiary.

Day 130: May 10, 2015

Diary entry:

Today was the last outbound day of the road trip. Madrid to Porto, Portugal. All the way to the Atlantic.

With this push of driving, I have now driven from the Atlantic all the way inland to Romania and Bulgaria! The only countries outside of the former USSR in continental Europe I have not driven to are Greece, Norway and Finland.

The drive from Madrid to Porto was a continuation of the theme of mountains and hills, though there were definitely more plains visible today once we passed Ávila until close to the Portugal border. And speaking of Ávila, what a beautiful old city!

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Driving between #Madrid and #Portugal today. Caught a glimpse of an amazing walled city off to the left of the highway and decided to turn back. The city is called Ávila and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's also believed to be the birthplace of Santa Teresa of Jesus, and I saw nearby signs for the Camino de Santiago route. Ávila is said to be one of the better preserved medieval towns in Europe and has a high concentration of Romanesque and Gothic churches. What intrigues me most aside from the obvious history and architecture, is its local gastronomy. Lots of interesting dishes, several products with D.O. status, and even a special dessert honoring St. Teresa "Yemas de Santa Teresa". Definitely wanting to come back and explore. #spain #tbex

A post shared by Erin De Santiago (@erindesantiago) on May 10, 2015 at 11:13am PDT

Had a little trouble finding our Mercure hotel in Porto, our GPS maps are three years old, but we made it! With a view of the ocean to boot.

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Made it to Porto, and our room has a view of the Atlantic and the #sunset. Just the one night however. So making the most of it with a nice dinner in town.

A post shared by Brett Domue (@metsbwd) on May 10, 2015 at 12:18pm PDT

We decided to go for a nicer dinner at Restaurante “O Paparico” for some outstanding Portuguese food.

The Beer:

Name: Imperial Stout

Style: Imperial Stout

Producer: Tro Ales

Alcohol content: 10.0%

Bottle size: 0.33l

Purchased from: The Tro Ales stand at Birrasana 2015 in Blance, Spain

Imperial Stout by Tro Ales is a decent imperial stout. Nice dark flavors. Not too bitter though. More caramel than coffee / chocolate. Even at 10% ABV.

Commercial Description:

Its great taste roasted malts gives way to rich caramel notes, full-bodied and hoppy character thanks to huge amounts of American hops.