Beer # 71 Imperial Crème Brûlée Stout

Imperial Crème Brûlée Stout

Southern Tier Brewing Company
Lakewood, New York, USA
Independent
Imperial  Flavoured Milk Stout 9.6% ABV Brown Glass Bottle 650 ml.
$9.25 (Canadian) At LCBO.

Back again with one of my favourite New York breweries, Southern Tier, to do a beer style I have not yet posted about. Milk Stout. Milk Stout differs from "Dry Stout" (I.E. Guinness) in the the fact that lactose has been added during the brewing process. Lactose is a type of sugar derived from milk.Without getting too scientific, Lactose is a disaccharide (meaning, simply "two sugars"). It is formed by bonding the two simple sugars of glucose and galactose. Another disaccharide is maltose which is formed from complex plant starches such as grains like barley, rye, and wheat; you guessed it, barley malt equals maltose equals beer. Isn't science fun? During the brewing process, yeast requires sugar to form three helpful byproducts. Heat, carbon dioxide, and everyone's favourite... ethyl alcohol (beer, wine, vodka etc...) Now maltose is made up of two glucose molecules, and is the perfect food for yeast. However, lactose cannot be digested by yeast and remains untouched in the final product. So the question you ask is: why put it in, in the first place? The answer is simply: medicine. During the last half of the 19th century doctors believed that stout beers contained many of the nutrients and vitamins necessary for life. (Suddenly that old ad "Guinness is Good for You." starts to make sense...) So when food was expensive and beer was cheap, to help the average worker keep working doctors would prescribe a pint of stout a day to people who seemed weak, and thin. (where do I get one of these? Will Healthcare cover the cost of beer?) So back to the lactose, where does it come in? Yeast consumes the sugars in the beer, thereby reducing the calorie count. So to increase the calorie count you would have to put in a sugar that doesn't get consumed. Hence the lactose. Milk stouts were invented as a fortifying drink full of vitamins and calories to help you get through your day. Even to this day, many people believe a pint of stout a day for a nursing mother is good for her, and the baby! Another similar beer with a similar back-story is Oyster stout (yes with real oysters in it!) when I find an authentic oyster laden stout... you guys will be the first to know!


Now a note about tonight's beer. It is listed on the bottle as an "Imperial Milk Stout." Now what does the imperial mean? Imperial was a designation for a very specific stout brewed for the Russian court of  Catherine the Great. It was first brewed by Thrales of London (England) in the 1700's. It's defining characteristic was its high alcohol content ( about 9% ). Today the lines of distinction have been blurred and often any beer of a high alcohol content tends to be called "Imperial." One may find Imperial Porter, Imperial Baltic Porter, Imperial IPA etc. So Imperial's true meaning has been lost, if you see something denoted as "Imperial" today, just drink one... the alcohol is probably pretty high. As well, tonight's beer has been flavoured with real vanilla bean. Yes, yes... it is dessert in a glass.


Alright enough science for today.... Onto the tasting:

It pours black/brown with a thin wispy head lightly tan in colour with tiny bubbles. Intoxicating aromas of vanilla, burnt sugar, and chocolate. First sip gives us a creamy sweet milk-like attack which gives way quickly to the snap of caramelised sugar, and almond extract. As the sugar subsides the taste moves over to a coffee, toffee, chocolate, caramel latte taste, and finishes with a hint of malted barley. Well balanced and carefully crafted it drinks almost exactly as the eponymous dessert, layered strata of flavours building one on the other. Aeration is fascinating to say the least. The introduction of air whips the beer in the mouth increasing the silky creaminess. It feels as though the beer has turned to whipped cream. The flavour also slightly changes to a more pronounced stout, coffee and espresso, with a hint of coffee liqueur. Residual sugar in the brew leaves a "sticky" feeling around the lips, not unpleasant in the least, like one has indulged in a very caramel laden sticky dessert.



Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional                        

Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 6/6 Exceptional
Re-Order:  6/6 Exceptional  
Experience:   6/6  Exceptional


Final Thoughts:


Quite a remarkable beer, truly a dessert in a glass. Very satiating like a three course meal. 
Looking forward to my next Southern Tier.


Cheers
CJT