Forgive me for only liking it instead of loving it
Written: Nov 23 '08 (Updated Jan 09 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Thick, creamy, tasty head; extremely smooth; low ABV; subtle chocolate taste
Cons: Not nearly as rich, sweet and sugary as you'd expect; almost watery; expensive and rare
The Bottom Line: If you have a sweet tooth and appreciate craft beers you'll find this worthwhile. Opt for the bottled version.
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| Chad9976's Full Review: Young's Double Chocolate England 16.9oz |
With the holidays coming up I thought I’d give Young’s Double Chocolate Stout a try since it combines chocolate and beer, at least technically. I was hoping for a sweet, creamy beer, but what I got was basically a neutral-tasting beer with a chocolate aftertaste.
POUR, COLOR AND AROMA
This beer is available in bottles or cans with nitrogen widgets – which is what I opted for. It poured almost exactly like Guinness where the entire glass was bubbles that crash down upon each other until reaching about 1 inch from the top at which point they know when to stop. The head is thick, light brown and creamy and absolutely never dissipates while leaving constant lacing on the glass. In fact, the head is tastier than the body and possibly the best feature to this beer.
Young’s is extremely dark brown in color, or essentially opaque black. There isn’t much aroma to speak of, just that of a standard stout with the slightest hint of chocolate. I noticed as the beer reached the bottom of the glass the chocolate scent became more pronounced.
TASTE
I wasn’t sure what to expect from Young’s Double Chocolate Stout – would it be an alcoholic chocolate milkshake or just chocolate-flavored beer? Well, neither of these would accurately describe this brew as it tastes like a generic stout with a mostly bitter palate that happens to have a chocolate aftertaste.
I found the taste to be rather plain and quite dry. The chocolate flavor is extremely dark and chalky. I was hoping for a liquid candy bar but that’s just not the case. Overall, the taste is almost watery in a way. It’s not off-putting in the least, but just not nearly as tasty as I’d hoped. Special mention should be made to the fact I drank the canned version of this beer, and I hear the bottled version has a much stronger chocolate taste.
FINISH
I may not be a stout expert but one thing I do know is these beers are known for their smooth finish and easy drinkability. Even the taste here is a bit dry, but it’s still no challenge to drink whatsoever. Having such an extremely creamy head certainly doesn’t hurt, either.
BODY
Stouts are known for being thick, heavy beers and since this beer contains a sugary flavor on top of the usual beer ingredients it should be nearly obese, right? Surprisingly, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout is much lighter than you would assume. At only 5.2% ABV, this is quite an average-strength beer. The body seems thinner than most stouts, although I’d imagine each serving contains at least 200 calories (information not available on the brewer’s website). You could easy go through a few glasses of Young’s without feeling overwhelmed.
FINAL THOUGHTS
From what I can tell I’m in the minority for not loving Young’s Double Chocolate Stout. Not that I think it’s a bad beer, but I just didn’t find it as appealing as most other drinkers do. I was hoping for a richer, sweeter taste but what I got was drinkable and satisfying.
OTHER STOUTS:
Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (3)
Guinness Stout Draught (4)
Guinness Extra Stout (4)
Samuel Adams Cream Stout (4)
Saranac Vanilla Stout (4)
NOTE: watch the video version of this review at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9g6QJ_4HUg
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Chad9976
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Member: Chad Polenz
Location: Albany, New York
Reviews written: 656
Trusted by: 147 members
About Me:Check out Chad'z Beer Reviews on YouTube
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