Highland Brewing Company’s Black Mocha Stout

With it being fairly cold outside, my tastes naturally turn towards stouts and porters. This time around I decided to go for Highland Brewing Co.‘s Black Mocha Porter. I would have loved to have had this outside, in front of my outdoor fireplace, but that would have made it hard to write my tasting notes, now wouldn’t it?

Instead I tried this as I waited for my coconut crusted tilapia with mango and papaya (courtesy of Kroger) to cook.

Here’s what the packaging says about this brew:

Highland’s most robust beer, having a very malty body with a large, roasted chocolate flavor, all achieved solely through the use of special roasted barley grains. It is black in color with a very clean finish and a moderate hop flavor.

The Pour
This poured very dark, really basically black but with reddish tinges around the edges of my pint glass. A vigorous pour results in a nice pillowy mocha-colored head that leaves just a touch of lacing on the glass.

The Nose
There are very nice chocolate notes on the nose, and hints of the roasted goodness to come. It really smells terrific, like a Riesen’s candy or a high-end tootsie roll.

The Taste
This has a nice full body. The chocolate is not that noticeable really, but the roasted flavor is quite strong and wonderful! There is a good amount of carbonation, not too much, and the mouthfeel is , to me, a little thick and oily, in a very good way.

Overall
Highland Brewing Co. seems to produce good products, but I was still surprised at just how good this beer really was. With every swallow I thought, “This is one good beer!” The roasted flavor is terrific and it really just works for me. Excellent brew!
Recommended: Absolutely. I am enchanted with this beer. Terrific stout flavors.

Price: $9.99/6-pack

ABV: 5.3%

Young’s Luxury Double Chocolate Stout

I decided yesterday that it was time for a new beer review. I had intended to go pick up a jug of Mississippi Mud, but I got to the store and they had none. I don’t know if it’s no longer available or that store just doesn’t sell it anymore. Instead I decided a Young’s Double Chocolate Stout sounded good, so I brought home a bottle and chilled it. The anticipation was killing me as it cooled in the dark confines of the fridge, nestled among the milk and the orange juice.

I’ve had this beer many times and is actually one of my favorites, but I thought I’d review it and share it with my fellow beer snobs.

Young’s is a brewery based in England, and according to their Web site they have been brewing beer since 1581! I’ve tried several of their brews, and you almost can’t go wrong with anything they brew. I say “almost” because I tried their Waggledance beer once, which is a honey beer. I don’t generally like honey beers.

Young’s Luxury Double Chocolate Stout is touted on their bottle as being a dark ale with natural chocolate flavor added. The bottle also says:

Young’s Double Chocolate Stout has an intriguing twist. Chocolate malt and real dark chocolate are combined with Young’s award-winning rich, full flavored dark ale to craft a satisfyingly indulgent, but never overly sweet experience.

I’d say that’s a pretty accurate description. Anyway, on to the review.

The Pour
I cracked open this nectar of the stout gods and poured it into a nice pint glass, giving it just enough speed at the end to raise a nice thick, rich and fluffy dark tan head with dense bubbles. The head dissipated slowly with very slight lacing. When drinking the beer though, the head left some good lacing on the side of the glass.

The ale itself was basically pitch black, or a brown as close to pitch black as possible, and basically opaque. I couldn’t see more than the slightest tiniest hint of light shining through.

The Nose
The nose is a wonderful dark chocolate bouquet. There are hints of coffee and licorice in the nose as well. It smells very full bodied….almost chewy. It smells like heaven.

The Taste
There’s much more coffee in the taste than in the nose. There is still dark chocolate evident, but it’s more noticeable in the finish. This is quite smooth with a good amount of body (on the heavy side of medium). The beer coats your mouth with coffee, chocolate and malty goodness. As it warms, the coffee and dark chocolate flavors sort of meld together and become one new flavor….almost a dark chocolate mocha.

In Summary
Overall, this is a terrific example of a stout, even though it’s flavored with real dark chocolate. Stouts are generally wonderful mixtures of coffee and chocolate flavors anyway. This brew just takes those flavor profiles to another level.

I drank this in early July, but it is best in late fall or winter, preferably sitting in front of a wood fire. This is definitely not a session beer, but something to be sipped and sniffed and savored.

Incidentally, I once spoke with a beer seller at one of my usual haunts who told me there was a couple who would come in and buy Young’s Double Chocolate Stout and a Cherry Lambic. Apparently they would, for dessert, mix the two. I suppose it was like drinking a chocolate covered cherry. I may try that some time.

Recommended: Absolutely, without question, YES!
Price: $3.99 for basically a pint
ABV: 5.2%