Cigar City El Murciélago

Double Cream ale with cumin and lime peel added aged in tequila barrels

3.5

176 reviews

Tampa, United States

Community reviews

3.6 From tap at Copenhagen Beer Celebration 2015, Green session. Amber copper color with light beige head. Malty aroma, light roasted, caramel, wood, strong leather notes, spicy, wood, alcohol. Heavy Sweet and bitter taste. Medium oily body with soft carbonation.

3.5 Shared at a tasting hosted by Steebo on February 13. This beauty poured from a growler. The pour is a darker ruby or copper color with a soft lighter khaki colored head. The aroma is really interesting. There is a good bit of tequila here, mixed with taco meat and straight up cumin. Not really picking up on any lime. The flavor has a good spiciness to it, from the cumin, and it’s got a strangely nutty flavor. There is a light oaky tequila on the back end, and just a hint of the lime citrus there. The mouthfeel is really creamy and softly carbonated. The cumin just presents a lingeringly spicy aftertaste that goes on for days. This is a weird, creamy beer.

4.2 @green cbc 2015 candid sugar, caramell, well balanced nice barley wine. long finish

3.4 Tap @ CBC 2015. Pours dark amber with a tan lacing. Aroma of taco mix, spice, caramel, corn and sweet malts. The taste has some caramel, lots of spice, corn and dark sweet malts. Weak barrel as well.

3.0 Bottle @ home, via rotbox. Pours a murky, dull orange appearance with a cream colored head. The aroma smells like Sprite (lemon-lime), spice, oak, vanilla, and some booze. Goopy. High boost. The tequila is quite strong in the mouth. Thick and sweet. Lots of corn, lime, pepper, and spices too. Not that great.

2.9 Sample at CBC 2015. Hazy light brown. Small white head. Tequila aroma, very boozy.. Bah.

3.6 Tap @CBC15. Murky, dark amber. Small offwhite head. Malt, honey and dried fruit aroma. Flavour has sweet honey, malt and warming booze. Sticky finish. Nice.

3.2 Tap at CBC15... Copper brown.. Thin tan lacing... Odd tequila roast toffee malts nose.. Wierd toffee mslts... Sweet fruits.. Odd fruits

2.5 2015 version was a cumin bomb, to the point where I thought there was something wrong with the El Catador growler that I had filled with. The bottled version from a few years ago wasn’t as cumin forward

3.2 750 ml bottle. Hazy light brown. Small white head. Citrusy tequila aroma.Alcohol very noticeable. Lime. Quite sharp. A little rough to begin with, but it grows on me. Soft maltiness balanced by lemony citrus and a little acid. Phenolic alcohols. Pretty unique beer. Interesting, but not all that drinkable.

3.3 Growler: Murky burnt copper with a lazy tan foam. Smells like a turkey club deli sandwich. Srs. Notes of very mild tequila, toast, mayo, spice, a hint of lime, taco meat (cumin?)? What is going on? Weird but it smells good! Flavor is huge vanilla, lime, toast, caramel candy, butterscotch, booze, rye chips, taco meat (definitely the cumin), & dirt. This beer is weird as fuck but I like it.

2.0 Crowler sent as part of a super bowl box! Pour has a dark muddy brown color with a ring of brown head on the glass. Aroma has sweat, sweet malts, odd spices, some tequila, and light pepper. Like a sweaty Indian chef. Mouth feel is medium with low side carbonation. Flavor has all of the incredible notes in the aroma, sticky malts, mild sweetness, and a lingering finish. I am not sure cumin was ever meant to be added to a beer and this is proof of that, it is just all sweaty Indian spices.

2.0 On tap at the brewery. Going into this knowing I dislike tequila more than just about anything, but had to try it. Pours murky brown like a barleywine with a small khaki head. Aroma is a horrendous mix of tequila and vomit, and nothing else. Seriously, smells like I’m about to just drink a straight shot of Jose Quervo. Completely awful. After I build up the courage to take a sip--and let my gag reflex settle--the beer actually surprised me a bit. It drinks extremely smooth, with big vanilla notes from the barrel, light lime but barely noticeable, lots of tequila still, but not offputting as the nose, and some caramelly malts to back this up. Actually pretty thick bodied for a cream ale, and it’s needed to hold up to the barrels. I couldn’t ever drink more than an ounce of this, and don’t ever want to drink it again. Though I can’t say it tastes good, per se, I’m actually extremely impressed that CCB was able to meld these flavors in a way that works pretty well. If you’re a tequila lover, sure you’ve gotta try this. If you hate tequila, you won’t like it. But it’s quite the experience.

3.5 Somewhat murky amber pour with no head. Nose is boozy, some tequila and a little spice character. Honey and some fruity notes as well. Flavor follows, boozy, sweet honey and cherries... More cherries than I expected? More sweet malts and some tequila notes (I’m assuming as I don’t drink tequila). It’s not rough actually, not as rough as I expected.

2.6 Snifter from tap at the CC brewery tasting room in Tampa, FL. Disappointing! Tequila and beer together, not good.

3.6 1/5/2015. On tap at the brewery. Brown-amber color with a thin tan head. Tequila aromas with spices. Sweet sappy flavors, boozy with lots of tequila showing through. Fun to try, but one was enough.

3.9 On tap at Cigar City Brewing. Pours a muddy brown with an off white head and aroma of tequila and cumin spice. Taste is of lime and the cumin spice up front, with the tequilla aging coming into the spicy, warming finish.

3.7 At Cigar City with Audrie, Zachary and Brandon on Audries 56 th, pours a dark mahogany brown color. Nose is caramel, toffee and tequila. Taste is lime and tequila with a bit of spice. Finish is whiskey flavored and moderately long. Quaff Score 7 / 10

4.1 Pours a light brownish dark red color with off-white head. Barrel on the nose, some whiskey notes, with vanilla, caramel, and oak; follows onto the palate. Finishes with some sweetness and more barrel character. Very smooth.

3.5 On draft at CCB. This was so close to being an amazing beer for me. Beautiful barrel aging that artfully integrated the brew and the barrel with just the right amount of sweetness and very little heat. The lime came through just a touch to add in some nice tartness and played well with the barrel. However, the cumin was much too overpowering for me. This might be due in part to how much I cook with cumin and associate it with savory foods. But it just hijacked the beer for me. Make this without the cumin and I would absolutely love this beer.

2.5 (bottle) murky golden-amber colour with a frothy off-white head. aroma of brown sugar, lime and caramel, with a hint of dandelions, alcohol and fudge. flavour is more alcohol and caramel, quite sweet, with a hint of vanilla, some toffee and a herbal-hoppy light-bitter finish. heavy-bodied with average carbonation.

3.1 How: Bottle. Where: RBESG 14 not so grand tasting. Appearance: Orange colour with an off-white head. Aroma: Sweet, spices, caramel. Body: Medium body, low carbonation. Flavour: Sweet malt, spices, caramel, sugar, some tequila notes.

3.6 Bottle@Craft Clerkenwell (RBESG 10/08/2014) - fuzzy golden to amber coloured pour with a small white head. Spicy herbal and fruity aroma and taste, some light citrus peel, cinnamon, clove, some sweet treacle notes, and some slight wooden nuance throughout. Interesting brew this.

3.5 Bottle at RBESG ’14, day 4 not so grand tasting at Craft Clerko, 10/08/14 from an IP trade. Hazed orange amber with a moderate off white swirl and edgework. Nose is spice, curry leaf, pepper, tropcial fruit tones. Taste comprises more pulped tropicana, mango, currification is much lesser than the nose, spice, light pineapple, vanilla, touch of booze. Medium + body, fine carbonation, semi drying close with lightly warming alcohol. Ok stuff, surprised its not down as SHV though!?

3.4 Bottle pour at a Damico tasting. Pours a hazy orange with thin white head. Aroma of light fruit, zest, and cumin. A sweet start but the cumin over powers. Not my cup.

3.5 RBESG, grand tasting part 2 Hazy golden with a small off-white head, some lacing. Aroma of cedar and cigar leaves, lime. Flavors of cedar and mild smokiness This would taste great with a cigar in hand.

3.4 Bottle - Tequila, lime, cumin, pepper and some other spices. Hazy gold with a thin white head. Cumin, lime, pineapple and tequila in the finish. Interesting and complex, but not more than one for me.

3.2 Bottle Craft Clerkenwell tasting RBESG14. It’s hot. Its fruit vegetable quite interesting. Some heat. Ok. Herby. Tastes like a spicy veggie stew with sweet potato and pumpkin.

3.7 Bottle shared at Fergus’ tasting (thanks Fergus). Poured a hazy orange, with a thin white head. Aroma of spice, cloves and mango. Zesty hop flavours, with some sweet fruit and nutmeg. Finish was mellow sweetness, dry grain and apples.

3.6 Bottle shared at the July 2014 Watford Tasting. Pours lightly hazy orange with a foamy, off-white head. The nose holds rich bread, some wood, ripe berries. Medium sweet flavor with some toffee, cinnamon, bread, ginger cookies. Medium to full bodied with fine to average carbonation. Warming finish with some spices, alcohol, cinnamon and ginger, cake, slight citrus rind. Fairly dynamic. Nice stuff. (July 2014, Score: 3.6) Bottle shared during the RBESG 2014 Sunday tasting at Craft Beer Co. Clerkenwell. Pours clear orange-gold with a foamy white head. Big and sweet with light limey perfume, sugary bread, orange, spices. Medium to full bodied with average carbonation. Sweet finish with sticky, lightly toasted sugars. So so. (August 2014, Score: 3.5)