Oyster Stout
Spring House Brewing Company

Beer Geek Stats | Print Shelf Talker
From:
Spring House Brewing Company
 
Pennsylvania, United States
Style:
American Stout
ABV:
8%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.92 | pDev: 10.97%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
18
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 31, 2016
Added:
May 07, 2011
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  0
Brewed in honor of our annual April Oyster Fest. Yes, we do use oysters and it is delicious!
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by jpd7374:
Photo of jpd7374
Rated by jpd7374 from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +2%

Dec 31, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by Rizzy17 from Pennsylvania

Mar 31, 2016
 
Rated: 3.85 by PhineasMcClintock from Massachusetts

Apr 16, 2015
Photo of dfhhead25
Rated by dfhhead25 from Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -23.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Nothing too memorable. Thin, briney, etc.
Mar 03, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by newbeeraday from Pennsylvania

Nov 16, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by samsteff from Ohio

Oct 31, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by mickeyartery from Virginia

Oct 29, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by GreenMind from Pennsylvania

Oct 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by curmudgeon236 from Pennsylvania

Mar 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by ShanePB from Pennsylvania

Jun 03, 2013
Photo of orangesol
Reviewed by orangesol from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Served on-tap at the Tasting Room.

A - Pours pitch black with a decent one and a half finger tall off white head leaving small, sticky trails of lace down the glass.

S - Smells of light smoke, dark roasted chocolate malt, coffee and a tiny bit of earthy hops.

T - Starts off with plenty of dark roasted malt and some light chocolatey sweetness slowly giving way to hints of charred wood, smoke and coffee grounds. I get very little, if any, oyster flavor. Finish is very roasty, lingering on the palate long after consumption.

M - Big, roasty body and flavor with moderate carbonation. It got a little thin toward the end of the glass, combining with the strong roast to wear on the palate.

O - I really couldn't tell that this was an Oyster Stout, it just tasted like a run of the mill regular stout with a little extra smokiness. I wouldn't turn another down but I wouldn't rush to get one either.
Aug 03, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by pvequalsnrt from Pennsylvania

Jan 12, 2012
Photo of thain709
Reviewed by thain709 from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A - Served with a deep brown body that is borderline black...a thick, off white head forms and never really goes away...a full cap is left behind which leaves decent lacing

S - The nose is full of roast...pretty one dimensional...the roasted malt presents chocolate and coffee aromas

T - As the nose suggests, the flavors are full on roast...but they never become burnt tasting...dark chocolate and bitter coffee flavors linger around on the palate...I'm not getting much of the briny oysters but they could be helping in cutting down the full-on roastiness...the finish presents a mild bitterness with some faint hops coming through

M - Medium bodied...this one could have used some more body...mild bitterness with a good amount of roasted flavors

O - I believe this was my first oyster stout and I found it to be like any other stout...the briny flavors were subdued by the amount of roast that was going on...this is something I'd have again
Aug 22, 2011
Photo of Hojaminbag
Reviewed by Hojaminbag from Colorado

3.63/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Spring House Oyster Stout has a very dark brown body and a solid, slab-like off-white head. Retention is solid and the lacing is pretty good also.

The aroma has bits of coffee and chocolate, with a good bit of roasted malts. A hint of hops in the background.

The roasted malts dominate the flavor; every other characteristic is dwarfed, especially before the beer warms up a little bit. The roast almost tastes a bit charred. Other flavors include a hint of bitter coffee and a gentle chocolate flavor. After the roasted malt, the next biggest flavor is a muted toffee. The finish has a little bit of bitterness and citrus.

The body is moderate and the carbonation is ramped up a little bit.

I like it, and I have to admit that I was surprised by how big the ABV is. Overall, however, it is good but not great.
May 24, 2011
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

3.91/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
On tap at the Springhouse Taproom on Friday, 5/20/11. This brew pours a very dark brown to black color with a rich dark brown creamy head that forms about a finger strong. Pretty solid retention here, as it slowly fades it creates a wall of lacework on the glassware.

The smell of this brew is quite muted at first until it gets a chance to warm up. Once warm, some mineral character emerges first with an inclusion of citrus hops. Some slightly roasty grain character comes out last which is surprising, I would expect this smell to be in the foreground. Regardless, it's not bad.

The taste of this brew is a nice turn-around from the aroma. The roasted grain quality is right upfront with a mild bitterness accented by citris-like coffee and light hoppiness. This brew is balanced well with some residual chocolate-like sweetness. Roasty and tangy at times with citrus hops that get progressively more tangy as the brew warms. Overall, a nice fresh bitter grain character is in this brew that is quite pleasant.

This is an offering that is medium to light in the feel with a light to modest, acceptable level of carbonation. It is easy drinking and a well balanced american stout. The abv is well integrated in this brew, I never felt like I was drinking something in the 8% realm. I could see myself putting a few of these down while eating some oysters. Certainly an offering I would order in lue of Guinness.
May 23, 2011
Photo of Kegatron
Reviewed by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On tap @ the Spring House Taproom (Lancaster, PA) back on 5/7/11. Served in a pint glass.

Pours black, with roughly a finger of foamy mocha head. Retention is good here, leaving back some rich patchy lacing. The aroma smells of light protein notes of minerals and chalk, layered on top of darkened roast and sweeter malts. Just a touch of light floral and spicy hop character sits in the background.

The taste has an earthy bitterness to it with a good bit of dark roast, which that mineral character latches onto to. Light notes of cocoa and caramel help balance things out on the edges of the profile. The finish is dry, warm, and a touch spicy. The mouthfeel is medium bodied, with an initial sharpness to the carbonation that eventually mellows out and gets much smoother feeling. The alcohol is VERY well hid, which seems to be the hallmark of these big Stouts from here.

I thought that this was pretty darn solid and is probably my favorite of the beers that I’ve had from here lately. You don’t often see Oyster Stouts around but he nailed this one. I could have honestly gone for another glass.
May 19, 2011
Photo of Slatetank
Reviewed by Slatetank from Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
I had this on tap served chilled allowed to gradually warm.

The color is deep brown -opaque, black with small tan cap, the lace stickage is good and bead is fine. The smell is very roasty, although a mild caramel malt accent and light spice is noted. The feel is very good with mild sweetness medium roasted and semi full body with a gentle dry finish with moderate spice.

This stout is very flavorful, nice roasted notes that don't go too far into the char territory, there is a light malt sweetness to give the beer some complexity and the yeast makes for a dry stout in the finish with mild mineral elements and slight hop spice in the final tastes, I could drink this repeatedly as it has a lot of complexity and tastes nowhere near 8%, I would have guessed 5.5 or 6 tops. I really was surprised how much I liked this, but I have to hand it to Spring house this fits the style very well.
May 17, 2011
Photo of akorsak
Reviewed by akorsak from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
On tap at the taproom.

A: The stout is dark, another in the Spring House dark beer line-up. Served in an imperial pint glass, the stout has a thin off-white head (not as impressive as the head on Peanut Butter Chocolate Stout).

S: The nose is roasted, heavily so, with dark chocolate and burnt aromas. A dry powdery aroma comes with the territory.

T: Roasted stout flavors drive the ale, dark and full. Chocolate, semi-sweet in particular, is a significant part of the body. The taste is very dry, not quite Irish dry through. Oysters in the mash? Maybe, but there isn't much of a presence. A good drinking stout though, plain as day.

M: The mouthfeel is caustic, just a heavy dose of burnt malts. The roasted flavor adds more character than the PBC stout, minus the sweetness.
May 07, 2011
Oyster Stout from Spring House Brewing Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 18 ratings