ABV: 4.6% | IBU: 41

If you’ve had a fever for a drinkable coffee stout in the summertime, Pro Re Nata Beans Deep will cure what ails ya. It’s a soothing beer at a bucolic brewery.

Virginia’s craft beer scene is plentiful with rustic, countryside breweries destined as hangouts for locals, hikers and tourists. Our state is big on “beer trails,” providing craft beer fans a map to try adjacent breweries for a fantastic weekend. Normally, you would be taking Exit 107 off Interstate 64 to go to the classic Starr Hill Brewery, but you get a very pleasant surprise the moment you enter Crozet: Pro Re Nata. (Latin for “as needed” … and it’s incredibly fitting.)

The Pro Re Nata Farm Brewery defines its motto by supplying a myriad of handcrafted ales and lagers to satisfy desires all year long. When I visited a month ago, Pre Re Nata certainly had high aspirations from the scale of its taproom and building an outdoor bar made from old shipping containers. Even without distribution, there were 12 beers on tap and all seven flagships bottled for a cost of $6-7 per 22 oz bomber. The prescription I took home was certainly filling in a niche unseen by other breweries in the area — Beans Deep Coffee Stout.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BTaIcL6hpm2/

Beans Deep looks like a cortado when poured: a dark black base with a foamy white-tan head. The style “coffee stout” matches to name, smelling like cold-brew fortified with luscious chocolate. Pro Re Nata knew how to use the ingredients, giving the coffee beans center stage as roasted malts play in the background. I’ve never heard of Trager Brothers Coffee (as mentioned in the beer’s description), but I’d love to know what blend the brewery used for this.

At first sip, you wouldn’t believe a beer this flavorful clocks in at 4.6 percent ABV. You get roasty coffee with hints of chocolate and cream. The body is medium-light, making it easy to drink, but comforting for the campfire or as a dessert that won’t weigh you down. I’m happy Pro Re Nata has Beans Deep available as a flagship because this is definitely a beer you need to drive down to the brewery for and stock up.

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