S'mores Stout Grist Brewing Company
Trying a brew from a brewing company I tried two weeks ago. The hard part is that beers from this brewery are only available around them. I had a friend who works for the brewing company give me this beer and I am super excited to try and taste this brew tonight. I tend to think of myself as a dark beer fan, but the beer I tried from them first was a Berliner Weisse and I really enjoyed it. Now I am trying one of their stouts. If you have not checked out the blog recently the brewing company, I am talking about is Grist Brewing Company. They are located in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, they opened up in November 2013 and have not looked back. I think the impressive thing is "Science Balanced with Creativity", the more you explore different styles the more this statement becomes true. I think that is especially true with stouts. Everyone is creating stouts, so what makes the stout you brew different from your competition. Science can help you develop the body of the beer, but creativity can allow you to fulfill the presence of the beer you finally create. I am trying Grist Brewing Company's S'mores Stout. Thinking about the stout, I cannot help but think I have never had a S'mores Stout. Most have been Oatmeal Stouts or Milk Stouts, I am curious to see what is behind this brew. S'mores Stout has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 7.6% and an IBU of 57. This beer was the second annual homebrew competition winner. I cannot wait to try this homebrew winner brew out.
Appearance of S'mores Stout
I looked at the appearance first, to see what I might be able to gather about the beer from it. I look at this beer and I know immediately, I am in store for a dark beer. S'mores Stout has a dark chocolate look to it's appearance. The foam or head of the beer has a light brown tint to it, going off the name I could see that color coming from the graham crackers used or maybe the combination of chocolate and marshmallows. appearances can lead to clues about the beers you drink. For example, colors are example about how appearances can give clues to styles you are drinking. Aroma is another way to find out more about the beer or style you are drinking. I took my first whiff this stout and all I could think about is being around a campfire making s'mores. I smell the graham crackers that people use. I smell the chocolate and the smoky aromas. I smell this beer and think I am at a campground about to make a s'more. The last note I picked up on is the balance of bitter hop note to malt sweetness note that lingers in the nostrils.
Grist Brewing Company S'mores Stout
Taste is where I am excited to found out more about this beer. I took my first sip and noticed the medium body behind this brew. I took a few more sips and began picking up on the flavor notes. I first noticed the chocolate or cocoa nibs that were present in the beer. After the chocolate notes,I picked up on the graham cracker note that was subtle. I did pick up on the high alcohol by volume note in the beer, which I did enjoy but I picked up on it in the beginning. The more and more I drank of the stout the more I picked up on the lingering sweet taste left on the palate. This beer is smooth, but I suggest if you are going to have more than one you might not want to drive after it. This beer does go down smoothly, but the higher abv than most stouts is where you might get yourself in trouble.
I think that this S'more Stout is delicious and something I would recommend to someone whom enjoys stouts. I also think that someone who enjoys full bodied beers can enjoy this as well. To me I think the more I drank this stout the more it acted like an Imperial Stout, which I really enjoy. The body of the beer is where I noticed this the most. I also think that you can detect a bitter note in the beer, which if you like bitter beers you can enjoy this stout. I think I need to make a trip out to Grist to try some more of their brews. If you are around Highlands Ranch, Colorado make sure you stop by the brewery for their release of a White India Pale Ale, which is being released on Friday May 27, 2016.
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