If I had a dime for every time that I heard people say, "I don't like those dark beers," or explain any kind of "darker" beer (i.e., Yuengling or Newcastle) as "too heavy," or simply shy away from a good ol' Guinness stout because they believe the beer will get them a little too far too quickly, I would be a millionaire.
Eric Asimov, the NYTimes's wine critic, has something to add to the discussion on stouts in his piece, available here:
... many people think stout is a formidable blockbuster of an ale, heavy and alcoholic, just the way they assume darker roasts of coffee have more caffeine than lighter roasts. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Stout in its classic form is one of the lighter ales, paradoxically full-bodied yet delicate. For years, my go-to midday brew was draft Guinness Stout, a once-rare beer that has become easier and easier to find in New York in the years since the city’s beer consciousness was raised. Aside from the enticing flavors of roasted barley and coffee, a properly pulled pint is low in alcohol, around 4 percent, fractionally less even than Bud Light. It’s probably wishful thinking, but I like to think a midday stout aids the digestion. I know it improves the imagination.
Yep, folks, a stout can be pretty tasty, if you have the right head for them (and as I write, I know that some will never be reached. But Guinness has fewer calories than many "light" beers).
Some will tell you that there's little difference between porters and stouts. And depending on which side of the line that you stand on for that debate, there is little. But the primary difference that I see is stouts tend to have less alcohol, while porters often are higher in alcohol content. That could all be backwards, though, as it seems that definitions for porters and stouts tend to be moving targets and change form brewery to brewery.
If anyone out there has more wisdom to offer on the debate, please send your know-how along.
Porters and their flavors can range. So let's get into that range, shall we?
A rich porter with a solid mouthfeel, the Sierra Nevada Porter is a good starting point for first-timers. Once you head from there, come back to North Carolina for the Duck Rabbit Porter which hits you with that wonderful coffee-and-chocolate flavor, and what I thought was a hint of hazelnut. The People's Porter is reliably one of my favorites, and widely available on draft around here. You haven't really had a porter until you've had a draft porter.
And if you want to get into more tweaked porters, there's no lack of options. When you decide to get kinky, try out the Stone Smoked Porter. The brewers there have an ego, and it's rightly deserved.
The other week I paid a visit to City Beverage in Winston-Salem, which was holding a baltic porter tasting. Among the selections were the Smuttynose Baltic Porter and Victory Baltic Thunder. Both heavier, higher gravity and not for the faint-of-heart.
If you're a porter fan, you'll wind up in the Baltics eventually. Often these big beers come in big bottles and are great to have with a big meal, for that warm feeling when you put on your jacket to go on your post-dinner stroll over fallen leaves on the sidewalks in your neighborhood. These beers are good for sharing, and it's not a bad idea to get several folks together to try a few different porters at the same time.
Drop by Bestway or The Pipe and Pint, grab a big bottle o' porter, and share it with a friend.
