Chocolate Raspberry Sweet Stout
Forked River Brewing Company

 

flavours simply don't go. you can't force them to go together. its push + psuh... needs to be more balanced.

putting 2 independtly great things together doesn't make a thing great. raspberries alone, and stouts alone are amazing.

At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, from the University Ave. West LCBO in nearby downtown Windsor. My first beer from the London, Ontario brewery...

April 19, 2026: At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, 473mL in a pint glass. From my favourite LCBO at Tecumseh Mall in nearby Windsor. Canned November 28/25. My 2nd time drinking this, and 1st for 2026. Studiously appraised, with adoration, by Sundae the cat...

Look: Pours dark brown, with flecks of amber. Off an aggressive pour it presents with a 2 finger rocky tawny head. The head pulls back slowly over the first 5 minutes leaving good lacing and a decent cover across the whole top.

Smell: Sweet raspberry syrup, hints of milk chocolate but the artificial raspberry syrup smell dominates and hits hard.

Taste: Surprisingly light given the smell. Hints of powdered cocoa mix, and dark bakers chocolate at the front with a light raspberry syrup thru the middle to the end of the sip. The raspberry aftertaste dominant over the cocoa and dark chocolate at the end. Very syrupy, I expected the raspberry taste to be artificial but was hoping it would be candy like in the sense of Swedish Raspberry treats. It's more like they poured in a raspberry syrup you would get mixed into a drink from Starbucks.

Feel: Flat and weak.

Overall, this beer earns a B-. Pulling off a quality chocolate raspberry stout probably isn't the easiest thing to accomplish, so I give Forked River props for trying, but this is a dessert beer I would look for again.

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Jan 23 2024 and served slightly chilled.

Pours an inky, opaque black hue with roughly one inch of sudsy, foamy tan-coloured head situated atop. It lasts for five minutes or so, soon worn down to a creamy collar and wispy cap; a half-inch band of even lace becomes draped onto the glass in the process. Sweet, confectionery-like aroma that leans heavily on chocolate: chocolate syrup especially, but there's also hints of milk chocolate and cocoa. Raspberry is also discernible, but it's much more subtle, as are suggestions of coffee and roasted malts.

It's tasty, but also straightforward. I'm getting dark chocolate and chocolate syrup at the forefront, with bittersweet baker's chocolate coming later on. The raspberry crops up mid-sip, adding a mildly tart, juicy-sweet fruitiness that accentuates the bittersweet chocolate, coffee and roasted malt flavours at the finish; just a hint of chocolate-covered raspberry sweetness persists into the aftertaste. On the fuller side of medium-bodied, with low carbonation that weakly nudges the surface of the palate, resulting in a smooth, satisfying mouthfeel. Good drinkability for a sweet stout - one glass went down easy, but I'd have to pass on seconds.

Final Grade: 3.85, a solid B+. Forked River's Chocolate Raspberry Stout delivers exactly what it advertises. Its blend of sweet milk chocolate, rich dark chocolate and raspberry is palatable for sure, but it does come off as lacking some authenticity. In other words, the fact that they used flavourings may not be immediately obvious to all beer geeks, but I suspect many will become wise to this reality over the course of the glass. I would drink this again, but I'd really need to be in the mood for chocolate.

Feb 14 2026

473ml can served cold into a chalice. LCBO purchase for around $4 CDN. Listed as "Chocolate Raspberry Stout"

Appearance - Very dark brown, nearing black in color with a finger plus of long-lived light tan head.

Smell - Definitely chocolate and definitely raspberry with milk chocolate being the feature chocolate. Gentle roasty notes back up the fruit. Nose is quite muted while cold, but does improve significantly as it warms.

Taste - Chocolate up front and it has a restrained sweetness, but is certainly sweeter than many a stout. The raspberry has good depth of flavor, although seems a touch less natural than other raspberry flavoring in stouts. Still good and satisfying.

Mouthfeel - Medium full bodied, moderately carbonation a touch clunky, but overall good enough.

Overall - A solid chocolate raspberry stout with a good flavor profile and solid aroma too. Worth a try, although better fruited stouts are certainly out there.