Thoughts on blonde/golden stouts?

I haven't had anything billed as a blonde stout, but I've drank many Bean Flickers from OddSide Ales, which is a blonde brewed with coffee. The look and the flavor are two different animals, and it's one I love. Dunno if I'd personally call them stouts since they don't match the definition (because of the color, 'natch) from the guidelines, but as a marketing term it makes sense. Maybe the terms "chocolate blonde" or "roasted golden" don't go over as well as blonde-or golden, or white- stout.

 

Never heard of it. And I’m a avid stout fan.

 

Are we talking about a coffee flavored Tripel?

 

Never heard of this style as well. Curious.

Cheers!

 

Had one at Old Chicago on a tap takeover by Great Divide. Blonde Yeti. Tasty enough but....

 

A couple years ago at my store we got a keg in from Sierra Nevada that was a one-time collaboration with some people we sent over there and I forget what they named it but it was described as a "blonde stout". We put it on our growler station and it did pretty well (I think mainly because of the name, none if the regulars came back for another fill or anything). I wasn't a huge fan, to be honest. Nothing in particular off putting about it, it wasn't a "bad beer" it just didn't click with me. Did have a lot of characteristic notes you'd find in a stout but you know, not...

I don't know, I thought it was off and so did a couple other people I worked with but a couple guys loved it

Thats really my only experience with it. I'd imagine you mostly see them in taprooms and not full releases

 

I say that it's the same as a "Black IPA": as a thing cannot be Black and Pale simultaneously, neither a thing be a Blonde and Stout.

 

Stumbled on this one a couple of years ago The Caucasian. Thought it was pretty legit. Had the coffee and vanilla going, achieved some roast character without the color. Drew and Denny have mentioned it several times on their podcast, I think they generally refer to it as a White Stout

 

Stone’s Master of Disguise was the first I remembered—a golden imperial stout. It was ok but really a novelty.

Kind of like clear Pepsi. Sure you can but why?

Note- clear Pepsi didn’t last long.

 

I'm not so sure I've known a few Stout Blondes in my day!

 

Though I've never had a "Blonde Stout" I would try one, but would also oppose any suggestion of it becoming a new style. I have had Ballast Point Red Velvet - which is touted as a red stout, and that was both the most wonderful smelling and horrendous tasting stout I've ever had. Truly a gimmick.

 

They don't look like stouts but they can sure feel and taste like them. Case and point: Stone Master of Disguise. I thought it was exceptional. I recently had White Canyon from AZ Wilderness and I thought it was very good.

I don't think it'll catch on (unless someone starts BBA them )

I don't have an answer to the style name.

 

The name Pale Ale was introduced to describe Ales brewed using Pale Malt. Beers (a different industry at the time) used brown malt.My extract in a previous post was from 1888 where "Black Pale Ale" was first mentioned.
Stout simply means "strong" and there have been a great number of Pale Stouts brewed throughout time.
What we generally think of as stout is a strong Porter which was once called "Stout Porter" ; given the laziness of people and the ubiquitousness of Porter the Porter part was left off.
Many if not most of the myths and misunderstandings regarding beer stem from the assumption that words in use today had the same meaning when beer evolved .As an example "Mild" simply meant fresh or unaged. The drink was Ale, it was either drunk as Mild Ale or Old Ale.
Beer books are too often written by people who do not go back to original sources with a knowledge of the language used at the time.

 

Sounds like an alt-white Stout to me, I'd be suspicious.

 

I'll put this blonde/golden stout thing in the category of brewers playing with style names vying for attention in an ever-crowded craft beer market. Blonde and Golden ales generally don't sell very well, but find a way to put a more popular style name on the label, like "stout" and an apparent contradiction with Blonde/Golden and it will likely be looked at by more potential customers. A percentage of those looks will become purchases, but I suspect most would be as @alucard6679 described (see below), a one-and-done curiosity driven purchase. It's a similar naming/marketing as the zero IBU IPA.

 

There’s always the method of just categorizing beers according to how the brewer labels them. That’s probably how most “white stouts” are categorized here - which is fine.

Would I consider most white stouts to be porters (and therefore “stouts”)? Probably not. I’m even less inclined if they achieved porter flavors through the use of added coffee.

If someone wanted to turn back the hands of time to when “stouts” could be pale by convention (as opposed to linked to porters exclusively), then that’s fine too... but Sisyphus would consider that task too hard.

If I was adding such a beer to the database here, I’d likely (depending on the beer) just put it in the American strong ale category.

 

You're right of course, but in the US the historical meaning of stout as "strong" is mostly forgotten, or if remembered is secondary to stout [or porter] meaning a dark beer. I think most US brewers who name a beer blonde/golden/pale stout are knowingly aiming for what most current US beer consumers would perceive as a contradiction between light and dark.

 

For your reading pleasure:

https://www.craftbeer.com/editors-picks/golden-stout-oxymoron-or-legit-beer-style

Cheers!