Short's Brewing Company- Sustenance Black Beer: Michigan Spring Break Day Five
Friday, April 29, 2011 at 6:50PM | by Wes 
So my spring break is extra late this year because of Easter being pushed back and I was not able to go snowboarding in Montana. Instead I decided to visit my bro Ryan and is wife Amy in Michigan and check out their new house. It was a great and relaxing weekend and I loved every second of it. Naturally I brought plenty of beer back (about $150 worth) including Bell’s, New Holland, Mt. Pleasant Brewing Company, and of course tons of Short’s. Over the next five days, I am going to review five Shorts Brews in a segment I am calling, “Michigan Spring Break.”
So I saved this brew for last because it claims to be a meal in a bottle. Sustenance pours blacker than a witch’s hat at midnight. The aroma is sweet molasses and roasted malts. I honestly couldn’t tell you about his beer’s carbonation level (yeah it is that dark). The head was nothing but a hair thin brown ring like a chocolate milk moustache. This beer is like a black hole, it is dark, dense and mysterious. Also if you drank 6 of them it might cause a slight shift in the space/time continuum.
Short’s has created a pretty interesting brew here. Sustenance is a Schwartz beer which means it is actually a lager and that lends to the surprisingly crisp finish. There are definitive hints of roasted coffee, caramel and malt in this brew. Basically it is a lager that finishes crisp but has the body and initial feel of a porter or stout. I guess my black hole analogy wasn’t that far off. Short’s has crafted a remarkably original and unique brew that needs to be tried by anyone who likes to “eat their beer.”
ABV: 6.0%
Consumed: Sensory Glass
Verdict: Buy A Twelve Pack
