It wasn't long ago that I would barely touch a beer that fell outside the Bavarian purity laws. Now I get a bit excited when I see some oddity sitting on the shelf. I saw the name "Diablo cookie" and didn't read further. It wasn't till I was home that I discovered it was a spiced porter. It pours a rich deep brown/black with a nice mocha fluffy head. The bubbly head seemed to be very short lived in my opinion. The aromas had me as excited as a teen boy in coed gym class. There is some chocolate, vanilla, wee bit of coffee, ginger, pepper, tobacco, ash, and cola. With all that going on I still noticed that the aromas were moderate. Now the name cookie still had me full of pre concieved notions about what this was going to taste like and I was way off. This sip starts luxuriously silky and smooth, but within seconds, smacked in the tongue with ginger. I start to wonder if I am feeling some warmth but then comes the chocolate and I'm all smiles. But no don't get to relax as the cinnamon and vanilla enter the fray... and yup... there is some heat. Is that cayenne?... yes it is. The ginger and cayenne really warm the taste buds and are an excellent juxtaposition to the chocolate and vanilla. As I roll it around my mouth a bit I also taste some coffee, and wonderful malt notes. This is such a cool brew.