Porters and Stouts

I'm a pale ale, IPA, gimme-all-the-hops-you-got kind of guy. But it's winter, and Todd reminded me today it's time to get into porter and stout mode. So, following Brendan's hockey practice tonight, he and I swung into the nirvana that is the Giant Eagle beer cooler.

As any young padwan would do, Brendan immediately asked, "Dad, are we getting some Dead Guy tonight?" His learnings at such a young age warmed my heart...guessing it wouldn't warm his mother's heart the same way. Just a guess on my part...

Since I was on a mission for porters and/or stouts, I had to fore go my son's excellent suggestion. I roamed the beer cooler for a while and settled on some Young's Double Chocolate Stout and a selection from the Rogue brewery, their Mocha Porter. The Rogue brew didn't disappoint, and though I'm not a huge fan of porters, this one is quite tasty. The Young's, though, oh my. I had forgotten how good this beer was. The first sip was all chocolate, and it only got better from there.

Not to be missed in tonight's rundown is there was already some Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout in the fridge. Barley's in downtown Columbus made me a fan of Russian Imperial Stout, and I rate theirs better than the bottles from the good folks at the North Coast Brewery. After the first one from Barley's I was convinced they measured the alcohol content in it by proof rather than by volume. However, short of bringing my next growler home from Barley's, Old Rasputin fits the bill.

So far, the shift into porter and stout mode is going well. I'm sure some Christmas brews, such as some Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale, will be in order as well.