#12Stouts: Year number the second

Its December again; so that means its time for Bristol Beer Factory's 12 Stouts of Christmas. I really enjoyed last year's efforts; so had to pick them up again. There's 8 new ones this year, including a recipe change on the year-rounder Bristol Stout. I've reviewed the newbies below:

Bristol Stout has been revamped this year and gained 1% ABV in the process. Dark brown with fine bubbles and light tan head. Fruity dark beer with smooth body and lightly smoky blackcurrant. Slight roast barley and coffee in finish. More caramel notes as it warms. Quaffable enough but much better in the modified forms.

Port Stout is a variant of Bristol Stout with an ABV of 5.5% Dark black with fluffy white tan head. Minimal nose on opening, touch of toffee perhaps. Medium carbonation, some warming sugars and higher alcohols. Touch of astringent plum skin and bitter coffee grounds in finish. 

Another variation on the Bristol Stout is smoked chili chipotle Dark brown with pink tinged brown head with red flecks, could that be remaining chili? Rich chocolate enrobed black cherry, smoke, sweet tomato. Initial tongue tingling gives way to milk chocolate followed by a fruity chili hit which warms the tongue and throat on the swallow and a dry ashen roast barley finish with a fiery tingle. This could cope with a higher ABV and would be a great food beer. 

Blackcurrants and Licorice is also a Bristol Stout variation. Grey-brown with fluffy pale tan and subtle earthy spicy blackcurrants and dusty yeast. Medium carbonation, tart blackcurrant, a touch of spearmint perhaps. A spike of anise like licorice before the dry roast barley kicks in for the long finish. It’s subtle but flavourful.

Creme Brulee is an Imperial version of milk stout brewed in collaboration with Melissa Cole (she gets around a bit!) aged in rum casks for two months. Spicy rummy (think rum & rasin) nose on this ruby tinged dark mahogany beer. Lively crema head which soon collapses. Smooth body, gentle carbonation, sweet notes, big burny boozy up front becoming a burnt toast, molasses and tart red fruit melee. Long milky custard finish.

The bourbon cask Imperial Stout (10.5%) is dark tar brown with fluffy tan head that soon collapses. Rich vanilla and coconut nose with an underlying hint of marmite. Gentle carbonation with cola first then tonnes of woody vanilla with some meaty yeast and soft cream cheese notes. Long sticky warming finish.That alcohol is pretty well hidden.

And finally Speyside whisky @10.5% has some peatsmoke and iodine plus plenty of whisky booze. Dark brown with cola head that soon disappears to nothing. That peaty malt is unexpected for a speyside whisky, perhaps an Ardmore. Fair amount if residual malt sweetness and long dry earthy finish. 

Pick of the bunch for me though was the mocha. At only 4.5% (base beer milk stout) its gloriously drinkable and one of the best coffee beers I've had the pleasure of drinking and I've had a lot. Dark brown with fluffy tan head. The coffee is the star here singing out from the aroma as roast beans, red berries and rich barley notes. First flavours out are the sweet lactose milk notes followed by dark chocolate and a long roast coffee finish. With caramel, red berry and vanilla finish. A fantastic improvement on last year's latte.

So are they worth buying? In my opinion they are, I'd happily drink a case of the mocha alone. There may still be some available but I expect you'll struggle to get them delivered in time for christmas. Get them here!

Follow Bristol Beer Factory on Twitter @BrisBeerFactory and Head Brewer Chris Kay @BeerFactoryCK9.

Beer Nut

The Beer Nut was kind enough to take a couple of the International Arms Race beers off of my hands and leave me some of his homebrew in return. I must confess to liking his 'brand-name'-"Dodgio" and its great to see all of the ingredients on the label, even down to the yeast used, something I wish other brewers would do.

Informative labelling, my favourite!

 

Pours hazy burnished gold with Nelson Sauvin grapey kiwi aromas distinguishable at ten paces (didn't even need the comprehensive ingredients list to know this one!). Moving closer there's tangerines and a light sourness. There's gentle carbonation and the flavour is all about the tangerine at first with a gentle bitterness and balanced malt. Those tropical flavours and low bitterness remind me a lot of |Roosters Baby Faced Assassin. This beer drinks like a session beer, I'd love another!

A Dark brown with coca-cola head. Chocolate, acorn coffee, touch of roast barley and sleepy yeast on the nose. At first there's chocolate and orange fruit followed by a long nipping, warming chilli that gets the tip of your tongue and back of your throat. Chocolate makes a final flourish before the chilli leaves a lingering glow. Quite light bodied and fairly low in carbonation, the head took some coaxing to form then disappeared.

Again two fantastic homebrews that would any number of "commercial" brewers a run for their money!

Apologies to John for being so tardy with posting this!

FABPOW Chili and Leikeim Steinbier

There has been some talk recently on steinbier; so when I spotted a bottle of it in my local(ish) off licence I picked it up. 

I decided to pair it with some chili and guacamole. I'm vegetarian and the recipe is vegan, but if you're a real carnivore you can always add some frying steak/mice after the onion has been softened.

Recipe

For the Chili 
1 large onion 
3x cloves of Garlic 
3-5 tins pulses (your choice) 
1 tin chopped tomatoes 
Chili (fresh or powder form) 
Optional 
Bell Pepper 
Tomato Puree 
Smoked Paprika 
Marmite

Fry the onion until transparent. Add the smoked paprika and mix well. Drain and rinse the pulses and add to pan along with chopped tomatoes. Add tomato puree and water as necesarry to adjust consistency. Generous squirt of marmite to get that umami and vitamin B in your meal. Add the chilis and bell peppers and wait until softened. It tastes better if left out overnight to absorb the flavours. 

For the Guacamole

2xAvacados

1xshallot

1 large tomato

1 tbs lime juice

half x jalapeno

bunch fresh corriander

Fairly simple this one, roughly chop the ingredients then blend with a hand-blender. Season to taste.

I like to make this in bulk and used 6 tins of beans this time around. The key is to vary the size and colours of the beans for more interest in the bowl and a variety of flavours and textures. My favourites include kidney beans, butter beans, flagolets and black beans but any can work well. You can of course use dried beans, but that takes some forward planning as they need to soak overnight and require longer cooking.

I don't really have any traditional German glasses for the beer so went with my Tui glass instead. How does the beer taste? It pours hazy amber with peachy and sweet caramel nose. Fairly light bodied for its ABV with spritzy carbonation, a fairly faint maltiness with a little acridity in the finish which I guess comes from the steins.

Withe the chili those smoky notes work well with the smoked paprika and the fruity flavours accentuate the fresh chilis. Overall it has a cooling effect on the palate akin to sour cream, one for those who can't bear the intensified heat of chilis when hop-forward IPAs are bought to bear.

Leikeim website here (if you can speak German)

Black Isle Small Batch

I recently ordered a pick n' mix case from Black Isle Brewery in North-East Scotland. I drank a few of their beers at the weekend (review here). In addition to their core range they release special "one-off" brews, three of which I managed to get hold of.

Export Scotch Small batch is a souped up version of their regular export scotch (reviewed at the weekend) Its pretty challenging but enjoyable all the more for it. Dark brown.Dry and spicy, hint of rum, hedgerow fruits, treacle, liquorice. At first quite dry and fruity, wood, sultanas, tobacco, leather, smoke, molasses and kola in the long finish. That 7.9% ABV is very well hidden so beware! Quite sticky but also prickly carbonation. Would happily drink this again.

Red Hot Chili Bock was brewed by Tim Anderson (2010 Masterchef winner, yes he gets around a lot!) for a food and beer pairing dinner.Fluffy tan head on a ruby tinged black beer. Sweet aroma with golden syrup, a bit of smoke and black pepper. Sweet malt followed by an oily chilli with milk chocolate, a hint of coffee and mustard with an escalating chili warmth in the finish. A bit overcarbonated and thin in body, surprising for a 7%-er. I reckon that this could be tweaked to make a great beer.

Black Isle Black Islay is the brewery's stout aged in Bruichladdah casks. Bruichladdah being the dram that made me realise I enjoy Islay whiskys after all I've been pretty keen to try this one. Coming in at a whopping 8.3% and in a  750ml bottle this is definitely one for sharing! Except I neglected to listen to my own advice and have polished off the best part of a bottle in short shrift as its so enjoyable! Dark ruby brown bordering on black with big fluffy cola head and iodine/seaweed/briney/fruity aroma. Very smooth, vanilla, moderate carbonation, smoke. Long complex finish, a bit more vanilla, dried fruit, that seaweed. If you get your hands on any Black Isle beer I'd recommend this one. Its made me want to try the base stout too!

I also had one final "core range" bottle (it didn't fit into my rainbow) Heather Honey beer. Pale honey amber coloured with brief fluffy white head. Slightly dusty sweet honey and butterscotch nose. Light palate with gentle floral notes, vanilla and a sweet shortcake finish. Like a kolsch/helles in some ways, refreshing and probably a match for chicken or white fish.