Paste Magazine Blind Stout Tasting

You don't have to buy it / believe in it. Though I find it amusing you're on a site devoted to craft beer which costs more than macro beer for the very reasons, "artisan life", that you're lampooning - they charge us more so they can buy better quality ingredients and spend more on labor / process. So craft and not craft is an OK distinction but there are no levels to craft? It's necessary to choose fresher hops but not OK to choose renewable energy? Clearly Maine wants to use their ethics a distinction. For some people it's important to pay for a product that is made in a way they find ethically superior, even if the product itself is no better. Other people could care less - pollute, use child labor, pay low wages, offer no benefits, whatever ... as long as the product is cheap and sufficient. Not saying that's your POV but the "how" can be a point of differentiation as much as the "what".

The person I responded to simply noted they wanted an explanation.

Cheers!

 

What would get your vote? I am not sure if I have ever had Black Mocha. I usually don't drink lower octane stouts, so I am not that well-versed.

 

I guess whoever entered the beer thought it fit that category here better, but I don't agree and the brewery calls it a Belgian stout right in the commercial description. If we are going to approach BSDA as a narrower category as defined here and in other American organizations, then I guess a stout does not technically fit, so this beer is in the wrong category here as it's a stout. Remember, beer style classifications here are not always correct or what the brewery intends.

 

How much is their beer usually? They just started distributing to Ohio and everything has been $6.99/bomber. Other than Lagunitas nothing is that cheap here......

 

$7 - $10 for a 500 ml.

 

I've always enjoyed North Coast's Old #38 (Irish Dry Stout). It doesn't do anything crazy but it's like a pair of comfy warm slippers on a cool evening. My guess is it doesn't get wide distribution. The tasters seem to favor oatmeal and milk stouts, and hey, why not?

 

Was Quebec annexed by the US?

 

Pleasantly surprised to see Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout so close to the top. I'm a stout noob and recently picked up a six of the Duck-Rabbit on a NC trip. It's a really delicious beer, one that I will buy in greater quantities next time I'm back down that way.

 

"Allagash Black is a Belgian style stout brewed with 2 Row barley, torrified wheat, oats, both roasted and chocolate malt and a generous portion of dark caramelized candi sugar. The silky mouth feel is a great balance to the roasted character, coffee and dark chocolate notes expressed throughout this beer." -Allagash description of their "Black".

It is certainly more a stout than a BSDA, judging by ingredients, though BSDA is pretty broad and can incorporate a lot of variety in ingredients. So even though BA disagrees with the brewer's description, calling it a BSDA as it is listed here is not crazy.

 

I'm going to put a lot more stock in what the people brewing the beer call it, rather than what some random person entered it in BA as.

 

I like both, " Milk and Cookies Stout" and "Milk It" from Wicked weed better. Also, "Chocolatized" from Pisgah Brewing is simply amazing (won the gold at GABF few years back).

 

Could do worse than that top four, honestly.

 

That's Canadian... 51 American stouts.

 

Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout with some well-deserved recognition at #3.

 

All they had to do was add the word North

 

Very happy to see Noir get some love!

 

i wish lists like this had more geographic representation. for trying to do a be all end all of blind tasting it would be better served if they made more effort to get beers from the entire country and not just what is available in their region.

this honestly always annoys me when it comes to best ofs and listicles. i am a huge nerd and know about far too many breweries so i can always tell where someone lives when they make these up by who gets picked and left out.

 

I was happy to see Allagash Black on the list. It is one of my top 5 stouts and I rarely see it mentioned on BA. This is also one of the beers that awakened me to the level of brewing that is being done here in America. Thanks to @nyyfanatic213 for the post.

 

I had some Obsidian over the weekend and that is a really nice one from Paste's top 20. Another one I really like is Upslope's seasonal Foreign Style Stout. Wish they would do that one all year.

 

I lost interest once I read "stouts (under 8% ABV)"