Trial By Fire
Grandma's House

 

a pretty solid oatmeal stout base beer here, spiked with hatch chilies. a couple of things are real well done. the first is the chilies, they themselves seem to be roasted, with that ashy char on the outsides working well with the really dark malts in the stout. bitter and deep, really complimentary and good. the second factor working in its favor is the proportion. they arent hot in this beer, its more of an accent flavor, warm but not hot going down. peppery capsicum notes linger in terms of flavor, but not at all in terms of heat. the peppers selected are the right ones, and the stout is well built to work with them. lots of body, but a little acrid acidity too from the dark grain, and the oats help smooth it out at the right places. a touch sweet at the right times too. the hardcore chili beer heads out there will call for more pepper in this, but for a drinker who doesnt care for the heat but likes the flavor, this is one of the best chili beers going right now. still a style i generally avoid, but i can do a few pints of this one no problem.