Beer of the Week (Vol. CLXIII)

Another edition of Beer of the Week sponsored as always by the frugal folks at Glen Lake Wine & Spirits who can help find the wine, whiskey, and beer to deliver the most bang for your hard earned buck.

Black Friday is almost over and hopefully none of you wasted your time getting caught up in the holiday shopping hype. Wake me up when they start offering Black Friday deals on things that really matter like beer.

Until then, we’ll just have to make do with the beer bargains in our midst. Like this week’s beer, Brooklyn Brewery’s Black Chocolate Stout

This is the famous Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, our award-winning rendition of the Imperial Stout style, once made exclusively for Catherine the Great. We use three mashes to brew each batch of this beer, achieving a luscious deep dark chocolate flavor through a blend of specially roasted malts. We brew it every year for the winter season. It is delicious when newly bottled, but also ages beautifully for years.

$7.99 for a four-pack of 12oz bottles. Label is classy and luxurious with black and silver colors and a stylish font.

STYLE: Imperial Stout

ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 10%

COLOR (0-2): Dark thick blackness. 2

AROMA (0-2): Toasted cocoa with a little vanilla. 2

HEAD (0-2): Tan color, moderate volume, tight bubbles. Laces the glace nicely. 2

TASTE (0-5): Roasted malts with plenty of delicious dark chocolate bitterness. Heat is well disguised by rich flavors. Mouthfeel is syrupy, thick, and a little oily. Heavy body makes it one to savor rather than slam. 4

AFTERTASTE (0-2): The warming glow is lasting. 2

OVERALL (0-6): Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout is a big beer with decadent tastes. It’s a luxury item, but with a bargain price. Unlike most of the crap that people cluelessly consume on Black Friday, this beer actually would be worth waiting for. 5

TOTAL SCORE (0-19): 17