Posts tagged chocolate stout
Sometimes it is No Good
Oct 16th
I didn’t get to taste this brew at Octoberfest and I am just getting around to giving it a try. Everyone agreed that there wasn’t something quite right about it. Al described it as astringent.
It pours a nice deep dark burnt umber with a fluffy head of tan foam. But, something is not right about the aroma; something I’ve seen before.
The beer is definitely oxidized giving a strong astringent and cardboard taste. Whether this was just a very old bottle or an issue with quality control, I’m not sure. Either way, it isn’t good.
It will be quite awhile before I try any brew from Fort Collins Brewery again even though I did enjoy their IPA, but it is just not worth the risk when I have so many good reliable choices out there. No, it may not be their fault, but that’s how it is.
I dumped it.
Young’s Double Chocolate Stout
Jan 28th
This beer was the big surprise at our Octoberfest weekend. Apparently, I talked it up so much that one of my co-workers asked her local retailer to special order it for her and it took a month or so to arrive. When it did, she was kind enough to share a bottle with me, so I thought I should share my impressions.
The ones we had in October were in cans, so I was a little surprised to have this in a bottle. The label’s actually rather unassuming, but the 1 pint 0.9 ounce bottle has a bit of an odd shape.
Here’s what they have to say:
Young’s Double Chocolate Stout has an intriguing twist. Chocolate malt and real dark chocolate are combined with Young’s award winning rich, full flavored dark ale to craft a satisfyingly indulgent, but never overly sweet experience.
It pours with a nice, creamy head that doesn’t leave much lace on the glass. The color is very dark, comparable to a Brooklyn Brewery’s Black Chocolate Stout. But it’s the aroma that first strikes you. A very rich, but not overpowering, chocolate aroma. There is a hint of the hops under it, but it definitely reminds of that third grader’s elixir: chocolate milk.
It’s very, very smooth. Very nearly too smooth. Again, the chocolate comes to the fore, but not in a way that obscures the ale behind it. The mouthfeel is surprisingly light and, as I said, smooth. It leaves a bit of sweetness on your lips and there’s just enough hop bitterness to keep it from being cloying.
This is a dessert beer. Not a beer to have with dessert, but a beer to have as dessert.
I heartily recommend this one. If you can find it, get it. And tell me where you found it so I can get some too.
(5.2% ABV)
