…not a fan. But maybe if I had a chocolate stout like this….
…I would enjoy it more. Sage has a few L.A. locations so check them out for this beer as well as others of their canned offerings
Camping….
No Hazy Chit
I know that haze is the cool kid right now but there are still some beers that are bright and clear. And now there might just be a way to create that clarity without isinglass.
Isinglass is not vegan though and the fact that what was once a fish is used in beer is a strange thought to wrap your brain around. Now a company called Plater Bio is pitching the use of chitosan, which is extracted from specially cultured fungi.
According to the company the “initial trials have shown that fungal chitosan is a far more powerful flocculant than crab chitosan for clarifying real ale. We have worked with unclarified samples of beer from Pot Belly Brewery in Kettering and the results have been excellent.”
Depending on the cost, this might become a go-to for those breweries that want to proclaim organic and vegan bona fides.
Review – Samuel Smith’s Organic Chocolate Stout
I have passed by this beer many times and picked up others from the shelves but recently, I picked this and the Old Brewery Pale Ale up to make my ‘fridge more British.
Here is what Samuel Smith of Tadcaster says about this beer, “Brewed with well water (the original well, sunk in 1758, is still in use with the hard water is drawn from 85 feet underground), the gently roasted organic chocolate malt and organic cocoa impart a delicious, smooth and creamy character, with inviting deep flavours and a delightful finish – this is the perfect marriage of satisfying stout and luxurious chocolate.”
It pours a garnet brown with a tan head that fades really quickly. For a relatively low alcohol content of 5.0% abv it leaves some legs on the glass. A cocoa powder / milk chocolate aroma is pervasive. Every time I sniff, it comes across strong without overpowering the senses.
And that chocolate note is the first off the block when you take a sip. It lingers for a bit but then is followed by some coconut (almost Mounds candy bar). That initial two flavors are then quickly subsumed into a cloying sweetness that is then followed by a bitter metallic note. I am glad that it is complex with such a disparate set of flavors but I really like the first half and not so much the second.
For that reason, I have to give it a maybe buy. It may well work better with chocolate or vanilla cake where that sweetness can match up and hopefully dissipate a little.