Stouts. The mother of all beers. These are tough-as-shit beers. This is the kind of beer you don't want to run into at 2am on your way home from the Rhino in one of Parkdale's many dank alleyways that seem to stretch longer and longer as you walk down them while becoming more narrow when other strangers enter them.
Stouts are the test of a true beer drinker. Whenever I am trying to recommend more exotic beers to a novice beer drinker, I wait for them to say "Well, I actually like Guinness" before unleashing a list of tantalizing yet bitter quaffs. If they enjoy Guinness then they can handle just about everything with an open mind. Now, Guinness being the most common stout, I actually am not a big fan of the stuff. I love just about every porter that comes my way, but stouts are a force to be reckoned with.
Tonight I am going to try out Belhaven's Scottish Stout and you know what - I am damn excited. Belhavens Scottish Stout is 7% alcohol which sounds perfect for the amount of bitterness that one has to endure with a stout. The website describes the stout as "the porter equivalent of the tall dark stranger". This could be taken both ways: like a horror/suspense film or a romance. I'm really hoping for a bit of both. I want to fall in love tonight and yet be truly terrified by its violent bitterness! The website also goes on to describe its "blend of triple malts, roasted chocolate flavour and hop character". Damn damn damn. I am totally intrigued now. Not to mention that it has won a Platinum Medal in the Strong Stout category at the 2008 World Beer Championship Awards. Here's to hoping that 2008 was a good year!
I have opened the bottle and taken a whiff of the pitch black juice within. It smells like a stout alright, definite hints of coffee, however it also smells a bit like an English Ale and a bit like an Innis & Gunn. How odd? It pours out thick and black with a dark brown head of foam that you know is going to reveal a bit of heaven. First sip, wow, very intense. Definitely sweet and bitter, however it's got a bit of a salty/almost-Olive like flavour. I kept this beer in the fridge (which I know is sort of against stout rules) but it tastes warm. It's very sparkling but not exactly refreshing. The flavour is overwhelming as it begins to leave a film on your tongue. That may not sound pleasant, but trust me, it's all a part of the wild ride that is the stout.
This is a great stout. This is like a go-to stout. The flavours are sharp and the carbonation mixed with the high alcohol content gives it such an awesome kick. Like I mentioned before, it's got the malty sweetness that makes the whole experience very pleasant but it's also bitter and slightly (emphasis on 'slightly') salty. It's really interesting how the flavour differs from licking a tiny sip off the opening of the bottle and taking a big gulp. Almost night and day. Really shows the complexity of this beer, how its main flavour is sweet and malty while the body of it is a wild and hairy dark beast.
After taking a big bite of rice and then following it with a gulp of the stout I am again very pleased by the results. The bitter/salty flavours have definitely weakened and let forth the sweet coffee taste that is the winning point of this beer. It almost reminds me of a good Winter Ale. What more can I say?
87 % : Well, I went in with high expectations and came out pleased. This is one classy stout, maybe the best stout I've ever had. Has a bit of slightly-salty/Olive-like aftertaste at first but it is mostly malty sweet and coffee bitter. Great kick of carbonation and high alcohol. This one I highly recommend! Great for stout fans and great for beer lovers. I can see why it won the Platinum Medal!
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