Orange Chocolate Stout
Sankt Gallen Brewery

 

 

As of 2011, this came in three varieties. The two I tried were Shonan Gold (a Japanese citrus) and Meyer Lemon. They are only distinguished by a sticker on the bottlecap, so be very careful to check. It makes a huge difference. All three were available at Tanakaya in Mejiro, Tokyo, where we got ours.

The numbers above apply to the Shonan Gold variety. The citrus and chocolate combination was aggressive and pronounced, but still pleasant. A good, very sweet beer for Valentine's Day (which is obviously what it's meant for).

The citrus flavor in the Meyer lemon variety, however, was tangy, overwhelming and universally grimaced at by our group. Definitely get the Shonan Gold instead.

Picked this up in Yokohama Japan and the bottle was labeled 2010 St Valentines Day Sweets Beer Marron Chocolate. Bottle says 6.5% ABV. Pours a nice brown stout with about 1/2 inch of head. Used a Riedel stemless chardonnay glass which helped with the sniff test. I definitely smell the chocolate a a faint fruit smell. I married it to some cheese bread and it was nice. A good way to unwind after being stuffed in the train a few times. The taste is definitely a roasted chocolate with some sweetness. I was not distracted by the sweetness. Mouth feel is just slightly effervescent and somewhat syrupy. Not too thick as some stouts are. Drinkability is fine, I could drink another one, had I bought two...

I'd upload a picture if I could figure out how to size it correctly.

330ml bottle poured into a small hotel glass. I'm calling it a sweet stout because it's a very sweet stout. I have a picture of the bottle and the beer; BM if you want it.

Pours dark brown but not very cloudy, medium light beige head that turns into a floating mass of film on top of the beer when it settles. Smell is sweet, dominated by (drum roll) chocolate and oranges (more chocolate than orange).

Taste is sweet, chocolatey and roasty, not at all hoppy, with an even sweeter finish which is where I detect the orange flavor. The orange flavor is surprisingly pleasant, with a little bitter orange peel flavor that clamps my jaw.

Mouthfeel is light and strangely dry, carbonation level is nice. Sweetness detracts from the drinkability, but all in all, I'm not displeased by this beer.