Chocolate stout battle proves no definite winner

By: Evan Finkelstein

Posted: 1/9/09

Here's to the official beer review of The Triangle! Each week I'll be ranking different beers from my own personal scale: The Suds-o-Meter. Rankings will take into account looks, tastes, smells, inebriation levels, and all that other stuff that makes beer so good (or so bad). But enough of this formality crap: let's talk brewski.

I hope you all had a wonderful break and enjoyed some great beer. But since it's only getting colder outside, we might as well check out some more winter beers. Inspired by reader Jeff and his suggestion of Young's Double Chocolate Stout, we'll kick this term off with a two brew comparison-two chocolate brews representing two different styles-sounds like a win-win situation to me.

The first beer we'll look at is one of the reader's favorites, Young's Double Chocolate Stout. Classified as a milk or sweet stout, this type of brew is similar to many of the other varieties of stouts. However, this style is specifically defined by the heavy addition of unfermented sugars. By adding the extra sugar, typical burnt or roasted characteristics that are created through the roasting of the grains are offset by sweeter flavors. Furthermore, the sugars create fuller bodied beers that help maintain the overall taste.

If for some reason you are still confused about where the style's name comes from, it's time to stop dreaming that you're still on a tropical island with a Corona-you can do better than that! With this brand particularly, the brewers used real chocolate as their sugar ingredient.

Poured out, Young's looks fantastic! The dark brown body is complimented with a mocha head that looks pillowy enough to hibernate in. When swirled around, the thick head sticks everywhere, which creates amazing and unique lacing all around the glass. This is definitely one of the best looking beers I've seen in a long time.

The nose was simple-semi-sweet chocolate with a malty backbone. Nothing else was noticeable at all; it is obvious that this is not meant to be a complex beer, just something simple to enjoy.

The taste of this beer was similar to the nose and ended up being very straightforward. There were no surprises and nothing extreme-just a simple, lightly roasted chocolate flavor. Interestingly enough, at first, I did not enjoy this beer very much at all. However, as it warmed up, it expanded into a decent beer. At a colder temperature, this beer was thin and relatively weak, just like the ABV level (5.2 percent). But as it warmed up, the beer became slightly creamy and more aromatic.

Price: $4.95/individual bottle

Bottle Size: 1 Pint

Look: 4.5/5

Smell: 3.5/5

Taste: 3.5/5

Inebriation: 3/5

Overall: 3.5/5

The second beer that we'll examine is Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout. Like Victory's Storm King, this beer is classified as a Russian Imperial Stout. Where Young's gets its chocolate flavor from adding actual chocolate, Brooklyn gets its chocolate flavor from roasting the grains it uses during brewing.

Brooklyn did a good job at naming this-the color is just about as black as you can get. Topped with a thick, frothy head, this beer also looks really nice. It also should be noted that there is obvious carbonation due to the small bubbles floating up the sides of the glass.

The nose was completely opposite to Young's. Hops, darker chocolate, espresso, and even alcohol are apparent. Simply put, this is a much more complex beer and was created to make you think a little.

As imagined, the taste was completely different from Young's. A chocolate core is dominant with roasted flavor bringing up the rear. However, unlike the Young's, this beer makes no attempt to mask many of the ingredients used. The bitter malt flavor as well as the 10 percent ABV bleeds through to create a distinct and strong explosion of tastes. It's a little overwhelming, which does take away from drinkability.

Price: $2.95/individual bottle

Bottle Size: 12 oz.

Look: 4.5/5

Smell: 4/5

Taste: 3/5

Inebriation: 4/5

Overall: 3.5/5

Ultimately, there was no real winner in this comparison. These two beers are extremely different from each other and share only a few common variables. For the common drinker: drink the Young's. For the connoisseur/adventurous: drink the Brooklyn. Thanks for your suggestion, Jeff!

Is there a beer that I need to know about? Want Suds-for-Thought to review it? Send your beer suggestions to entertainment@thetriangle.org with "SUDS" in the subject line.