Many see the winter as prime stout season, but I see things a little differently. I can enjoy a stout any time of the year, but this month is prime stout season for me. I think it has to do with St. Patrick’s Day, Guinness, and the like, but March is also low-key awful weather-wise. This last week has been inundated with snow, wind, and bitter cold. So, I say we celebrate stouts in March, like our Irish ancestors before us. Here are a few I found this week, including an absolute banger that might replace Guinness on the 17th for me.
Sun River Cocoa Cow Chocolate Milk Stout
Pours black as night with an off-white head. Dark chocolate and cream on the nose with slight coffee bitterness. Light roast coffee, milk chocolate, and cream flavors with a touch of bitterness. Delicious stout and not too boozy. 7% 25-30 IBU. Found in 16oz cans at Brewers Haven.
Innis & Gunn Irish Whiskey Cask Scottish Oatmeal Stout
Pours dark black with a thick head resembling coffee and creamer. Coffee, oak, and vanilla on the nose. Those flavors carry through to the palate with a moderate amount of sweetness. it sort of falls flat on the back end, with a touch of vanilla and coffee bitterness, but not a lot of flavor. It would probably be better with a shot of Jameson. 6.1% abv. Found in 16oz cans at Brewer’s Haven and other fine bottle shops.
Alliteration Ales Borealis Baltic Porter
This beer was quite the mouthful even before I tried it! Alliteration Ales, a fairly new venture out of Garden City, has been brewing for three or four years and this, I believe, is the first beer I have tried from them. This Baltic Porter pours pretty. Black as night, with a soft white head that sort of just hangs out on the top. Bitter chocolate, coffee, and vanilla aromas come up out of the depths. The beer drinks smooth for an 8-percenter, with flavors of milk chocolate, dates, coffee, and vanilla on the palate. Awesome ale, Alliteration! 8% abv 29 IBU. Found on tap at Sturman’s Cigar Lounge and here’s a handy tap map from Alliteration.
Left Hand Dry Irish Stout - Nitro
Nitro cascading pour, black with a thick, off-white head that sticks to the glass. Dark, roasted black malt and coffee on the nose. Beautifully smooth, with flavors of cocoa, vanilla, coffee, and char. Smooth finish. I mean, you could Pepsi taste test this beer with Guinness and you would get some wrong guesses. Awesome Irish Stout. 4.3% abv. Found in 16oz cans all over the place.