Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.

[bigglesworth]

Malt can have a chocolate taste - it does fit, oddly enough (doesn't mean it'll be done well though).

[ahammel]

chocolate? in beer?
that sounds bizarre.

It's a pretty run-of-the mill way in which to market stout, which is meant to taste chocolate-y. Some brewers will also add coffee.

I think it's a bit gimicky.

[SurgicalSteel]

Coffee and chocolate stouts are pretty common. And, in my opinion, delicious.

[TheAmazingRando]

High Water Brewery in the SF Bay area makes a s'more stout with chocolate, graham crackers, marshmallow, and smoke. It's delicious and seems to tap out everywhere within days every time it makes it to San Diego.

[Azrael]

chocolate? in beer?
that sounds bizarre.

How 'bout some edumacation?

There's this thing called 'chocolate malt'. It's a highly roasted grain, that when mixed into the grain bill for a beer with the appropriate colleagues, can yield a dark, roasted, very subtle chocolate flavor in the finished product. If you find a beer that is made in this manner, it is (practically without exception) fantastic. Because it takes a really good and knowledgeable brewer to pull it off.

On the other hand, there are stouts and porters which have chocolate flavor added during the brewing process. Some age the beer with a good dark chocolate in the aging tanks. Some just toss some chocolate or fake chocolate syrup in. Results are hit or miss depending on both the brewer and your tastes.

For instance, Southern Tier makes a slew of flavored beers (creme brulee stout, chocolate stout, a coffee porter at one point) that are intriguing, but overt. Whereas Founder's various coffee stouts (variations on their Breakfast Stout) are subtle, and fucking amazing.

[Tomlidich the second]

chocolate? in beer?
that sounds bizarre.

How 'bout some edumacation?

There's this thing called 'chocolate malt'. It's a highly roasted grain, that when mixed into the grain bill for a beer with the appropriate colleagues, can yield a dark, roasted, very subtle chocolate flavor in the finished product. If you find a beer that is made in this manner, it is (practically without exception) fantastic. Because it takes a really good and knowledgeable brewer to pull it off.

On the other hand, there are stouts and porters which have chocolate flavor added during the brewing process. Some age the beer with a good dark chocolate in the aging tanks. Some just toss some chocolate or fake chocolate syrup in. Results are hit or miss depending on both the brewer and your tastes.

For instance, Southern Tier makes a slew of flavored beers (creme brulee stout, chocolate stout, a coffee porter at one point) that are intriguing, but overt. Whereas Founder's various coffee stouts (variations on their Breakfast Stout) are subtle, and fucking amazing.

yeah definitely sounds better than the "pour hersheys chocolate syrup in with the beer" i had in mind. maybe ill give that a go next time i head to the store.

[SurgicalSteel]

You should know, though, that certain beer and good chocolate are awesome together. Beer and food pairings are certainly a thing, as much as wine and food pairings. A drink of good dark beer (such as Sam Smith's Nut Brown Ale), a bite of good dark chocolate, repeat. Also good: Young's Double Chocolate Stout and a big, juicy, rare hamburger.

http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/store ... &langId=-1

[GenericAnimeBoy]

Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale.

EDIT: Hoppier than I generally am comfortable with--very upfront piney/floral bitter flavor, but it's backed up by a mack truck full of malty goodness and a creamy mouthfeel. Wow...easily worth the price of admission.

EDIT AGAIN: Next I will probably try the Oaked version.

[Tomlidich the second]

creamy mouthfeel.

hehehe....hehehhehehe.....


(sorry, i act like im twelve sometimes)

[TheAmazingRando]

I find the oaked version is quite a bit better, though I still enjoy both.
I just wish I could figure out what they were trying to make when they made it. It really does taste like a mistake that happened to end up good.

[SurgicalSteel]

Harpoon's Summer Beer is quite a good, um, summer beer. I still prefer UFO White for Harpoon hot weather goodness, but since they only place I can find it is at the Total Wine and haven't been on that side of town in ages, this'll suffice nicely.

[GenericAnimeBoy]

Didn't get around to oaked ABA yet, but I did run across this on draught: http://www.stonebrewing.com/irs/. SOO GOOD.

[freakish777]

You should know, though, that certain beer and good chocolate are awesome together. Beer and food pairings are certainly a thing, as much as wine and food pairings. A drink of good dark beer (such as Sam Smith's Nut Brown Ale), a bite of good dark chocolate, repeat. Also good: Young's Double Chocolate Stout and a big, juicy, rare hamburger.

http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/store ... &langId=-1

Guiness Extra Stout + Fresh Blueberries. While the effect here isn't what most people are probably going for with food/beer pairings, it's extremely tasty. The thick bitter taste of the stout ends up making the blueberries taste incredibly sweet (where as I usually think of blueberries as being just a tiny bit sour).

[SurgicalSteel]

Blueberries appear to be in season where I am. And Guiness is always in season. I'm going to have to try this.

[roband]

I have numerous bottles of out-of-date, extra strength, Nigerian Guinness.

It's fucking lethal.

[|Erasmus|]

Guiness Extra Stout + Fresh Blueberries. While the effect here isn't what most people are probably going for with food/beer pairings, it's extremely tasty. The thick bitter taste of the stout ends up making the blueberries taste incredibly sweet (where as I usually think of blueberries as being just a tiny bit sour).

It depends greatly on how good your blueberries are. Some are quite sour. Good ones are not, but I do agree they go nicely with a good stout.

[GenericAnimeBoy]

I have numerous bottles of out-of-date, extra strength, Nigerian Guinness.

It's fucking lethal.

"Extra Strength Nigerian Guinness" is my Highlife Music cover band.

[mosc]

I strongly dislike the entire "seasonal" beer trend. It seems loosely based on the color of beer relating to the outside temperature. The hotter the weather, the lighter the beer's color should be (and vice versa). Also creeping in is pairing specific holidays with spices more commonly found in other holiday food. Neither lead to recognizing beer more objectively. I guess my main compliant is it promotes a more experimental and less evolutionary approach to beer design. I want good beer and I want someone to make a better beer. I don't want someone to try and make a beer primarily for the sake of being different.

[TheAmazingRando]

I think there's some sense to pairing beers with the weather. A good pils is great when it's getting warm and I'm outside a lot, Märzens are great when it's late summer and the weather is brutal, nutmeg spiced beers are great when it's blustery out, and heavier and sweeter beers are nice when it's cold out.

[SurgicalSteel]

Many of the seasonal beers I've seen relate outside temperature to how heavy or dense a beer is, which often heavily influences color. The exception would be if somebody put nutmeg or something in a wheat beer or pale ale and called it a Christmas beer. I would have no problem with that either, just like I have no problem with people putting nutmeg in chocolate chip cookies and calling them Christmas cookies.

(Yes, nutmeg is the only Christmas spice I can think of)

[Azrael]

I strongly dislike the entire "seasonal" beer trend. It seems loosely based on the color of beer relating to the outside temperature. The hotter the weather, the lighter the beer's color should be (and vice versa). Also creeping in is pairing specific holidays with spices more commonly found in other holiday food. Neither lead to recognizing beer more objectively. I guess my main compliant is it promotes a more experimental and less evolutionary approach to beer design. I want good beer and I want someone to make a better beer. I don't want someone to try and make a beer primarily for the sake of being different.

I can't help but read this as "I know what I like and beer makers should just work to perfect my preferences". Which is nonsense.

When it's warm out and people are doing warm-weather things, they consume a higher quantity of fluids. So beers with less body -- which almost certainly correlates to lighter colored beers -- fit the bill. My tastes run towards extremely high gravity, complex beers in general but when I'm sitting on the deck in the summer I'll take a really good saison or triple over a quad any day. If it's by a hearth in the winter? Find me a ridiculously dense quad or stout. These seasonal transitions in tastes are not new, nor beer specific. Think about hearty winter stews vs. lighter summer fair with fresh vegetables. This is a well established culinary thing, and railing against it is silly.

Although I'm not personally a fan of adding 'cheap' adjuncts (like flavoring or syrups) that aren't really part of the brewing or aging process, if you really feel that experimenting is detrimental, just stick with German or Belgians. Leave the people who are doing interesting things for those of us that like interesting things. That like to try something different. I know what beers, styles and brewers I like the best, but that understanding doesn't come with an exclusivity clause.

[Bakemaster]

Also, the reason that seasonal beers exist today (when there's no real ingredient limitation) has a lot to do with the fact that a brewery can't necessarily justify making every recipe available 365 days a year. If you happen to have the capacity to produce and distribute five different beers, you probably want to choose three or four year-round recipes and use the rest of your capacity to experiment in ways that will interest people, and expand your reputation, and provide some variety in your lineup. If a brew is good enough to be more than a one-off, but not quite good enough to replace a year-round recipe, barring expansion of the actual brewing operation your best bet is to put it into a seasonal rotation.

There are plenty of year-round beers of all styles on the market, so that anyone can choose to have a thick, dark beer in the summer or a crisp, clear beer in the winter. Take for example my post from last year, beginning of September, when it's quite likely to be 100 degrees here in Sacramento:

I went to Pangaea Two Brews a few nights ago and had Black Butte XXIV on tap. I never need to drink a chocolate stout again; everything I ever wanted in that style is present in this porter. This amazing, chewy, rich, wonderful porter. I have such an instant crush on this beer.

Someone at the time (maybe the server? don't remember) mentioned how it was a weird choice for the summer, but fuck do I care? It was there, it was on tap, it's a my favorite style from my favorite brewery, and it was incredibly good. The venue was air conditioned but I'd have enjoyed it just as much in sweltering heat.

[bigglesworth]

A nice cold stout (I was recently drinking Marston's Oyster Stout) is great in hot weather.

[SurgicalSteel]

The first time I had a bottle of Harpoon's Island Creek Oyster Stout, I discovered I really enjoy savory beers. I've tried Flying Dog's Pearl Necklace Oyster Stout, and it was pretty decent. I assume you would also recommend Marston's Oyster Stout. Any other recommendations for a good savory beer?

Edit: Snaked the last 6-pack of UFO White from my Total Wine that somebody seems to have hidden behind a bunch of 6-packs of Land Shark. Today was a good day.

[GenericAnimeBoy]

Blue Moon's Agave Nectar Ale - Lighter than my usual fare but I like it. Serve cold. Light and mildly malty, with a balanced hop note and a slight boozy sweetness from the agave. Would buy again.

[TheAmazingRando]

As I learned last night, there are "dive bars," and then there are dive bars.

Stone IPA should not taste like soapy Rolling Rock.

[Tomlidich the second]

went to a bar down in hermosa this weekend, was dissapointed at their high prices, the lowest priced domestic swill was like 8 bucks a bottle!

ill try something a little more local next friday

[Bakemaster]

I don't remember seeing Chainbreaker White IPA in Sierra Nevada's Duh-chutes lineup before, so I got a 6-pack. But it looks like it's not a new thing. Weird - a combination of wheat and hops, that's not bad, but ends up just being kind of... undecided. Make up your mind, beer. I'd rather have an IPA and a wheat beer and drink them both.

[TheAmazingRando]

I think Chainbreaker is Deschutes, not Sierra Nevada.

Stone just came out with an encore batch of last year's Ruination 10th anniversary beer - guess it's going to be a yearly thing now? Anyway, it tastes almost nothing like Ruination, and it's surprisingly malty for a Stone beer. They tend to have balancing issues with most of their limited releases, but this one actually seems pretty well constructed.

[Bakemaster]

Good catch, I meant Deschutes. They occupy a similar place in my brain.

[Telchar]

Finally found someone locally that has Coldsmoke on tap. It's a darker scotch ale than I've ever had, but it's really creamy and has quit a bit of chocolate taste. My mom, unflatteringly, describes it as chocolate milk. If you are ever in NW Montana it's worth tasting.

[Tomlidich the second]

anyone have a favorite beer to drink with sushi?

[Роберт]

anyone have a favorite beer to drink with sushi?

Go with an asian one. Something light and crisp.

[freakish777]

Asahi with Sushi. Nice and dry.

[Tomlidich the second]

Asahi with Sushi. Nice and dry.

sounds perfect, ill see if i can get my grubby paws on some.

[SurgicalSteel]

Tiny (and I mean tiny) brewery opened up the other day in my town. Some friends and I went down there on opening day and sampled one of everything they had. Nothing was bad by any means, a couple were boring, and a few were pretty damn good. Got myself two growlers, one filled with a saison, the other with a brown ale.

[dubsola]

Hitachino Nest make some great beers, if you want to give your money to a smaller company.

[SurgicalSteel]

Can you get them outside the city?

[Bakemaster]

Another Deschutes today. (And I do mean Deschutes.) Twilight Summer Ale. It reminds me a lot of Sierra Nevada's Torpedo Extra IPA, only turn the hops down a bit and the malt up a bit. And I really like Torpedo, so this is good. BA says that Twilight is an American Blonde? That's not a pale ale at all. This is not a blonde. No.

Kind of lame head but sticks well, great nose. Pair this with Tig Notaro routines on Grooveshark.

[Tomlidich the second]

anybody a fan of pabst blue ribbon?

i like it, i feel like a hick for drinking it though.