I hate lactose

Besides milk stouts, which, I mean obviously, how many beers have lactose in them?

 

Disagree that it is cheating, or that it tastes artificial and cheap. Lactose has it’s place in brewing and has been around for a while now.
But agree that breweries should indicate when they add it. Its one of the most common allergies on the planet and it makes millions of people feel like shit when they ingest it. How hard is it to write “milk” stout?

 

You're a grumpy old man. I love lactose in beer, whether it's an IPA, stout, sour, or any other style. I feel like it smooths the beer out and adds an extra creaminess to it, sometimes a vanilla-like taste depending on how much is used and what it's in conjunction with. What beers have you tried that tasted artificial and cheap?

 

Milk stouts have always been popular for using lactose. Yes, it is a fairly new thing seeing them in IPAs, but even then, the vast majority of them--including most NEIPAs--don't use it. If you don't care for it...well, I can't fault you for simply not liking it.

 

Yeah, I like how it contributes to both flavor and mouthfeel. It's like using oats and vanilla beans at the same time.

 

New England IPAs, especially of the aptly named "milkshake" variety.

 

Or just "Contains lactose" for the other styles? Or maybe "IMPA's" [India Milk Pale Ales] are next?

I agree, the fact that it is so common an allergen you'd think brewers would start labeling their beers that contain it, if only because they get sick of answering the question individually. The TTB's rules for labeling allergens is apparently still voluntary (and require ALL allergens to be labeled if one is).

For lactose use in beer, the new "Exempt Ingredient" TTB Ruling 2015-1 even specifies that the beers can be labeled and classified as a standard beer "type" without any other notice.

The most perplexing case is BBC's "Samuel Adams Cream Stout", which, according to secondhand reports over the years in which people claimed to have contacted the brewery does NOT use lactose, recently changed it's label to include a !@#$ cow on it. Great way to keep the customer guessing (and lose some sales at the same time). And the internet is full of erroneous references to SACS containing lactose because so many put it under a "milk/sweet stout" category and do no further research..

 

Respect beer.

 

Off the top of my head I've had lactose in Milk Stouts, IPA's and sours. Putting milk stout aside, I don't mind lactose in my beer. But I do want to know if it's in there because I may not be in the mood for that type of beer. I've had some lactose beers that are too sweet for my preference. As long as it's marked I'm good.

At least in my area, I feel like IPA's and sours that include lactose are always clearly marked, probably not for allergy purposes but most likely because it's viewed as an attractive ingredient by the milkshake/oat cream/popsicle IPA and sour crowd.

 

Almost every single beer Other Half has put out in the last few months has had lactose in it. But as a percentage of the whole market, most likely a small percentage contain lactose.

 

Like every ingredient it needs to be judged on a case by case (pun intentional) basis. Like every style there are gonna be folks who don't like it. Def. in favor of listing it as an ingredient on the label, as I am a proponent of putting ALL the info on the label all the time.

 

For me it's a non issue but I believe all consumables should be accurately labeled.

 

I agree with labeling potential allergens. I am mildly lactose intolerant and prefer avoiding it in my beers. I don't dislike the lactose flavor and it doesn't make me violently sick, but most dairy products give me uncomfortable gas. Beer already puts alcohol, carbs, and foreign yeasts into my gut, and adding lactose doesn't do me any more favors.

Careful, that path can intersect with the tin foil lined road being built by quacks like Food Babe and David "Avocado" Wolfe. I know from your previous posts this is not what you support.

 

Haha well if you follow my posts you know I am a fan of trimming down to 14 styles and being able to judge the rest from the information on the label. But you are right I am not a fan of pseudo scientific claptrap like foodbabe spouts.

 

@cavedave you're fighting a losing battle there my man, the Babe is much cuter than you.

 

The difference in requirements between the beer industry and food industry are a continual source of amazement for me. If I brought lactose into one of my buildings, I'd almost have to build a separate storage unit then provide documented proof that my cleaning protocols effectively removed it from piping, tanks, etc...

 

I see you quoted one Kosher Beer Blog, so I'll quote another.
The fact that the certifying agency differentiates between Cream Stout and Chocolate Bock, to me is enough of a proof that there is no lactose.
For more info about Kosher and it's ramifications feel free to PM me.
Cheers!

 

Umm . . . lactose doesn't taste like anything. It is simply a sugar that commonly used saccharomyces cerevisiae strains can't ferment, so adding it to a beer results in a beer with more unfermentable sugar and a "sweeter" taste and/or increased mouthfeel.