Stout Month – Let’s Talk S’Mores

Cerebral Brewing Company

WeldWerks Brewing Company

Off Color Brewing Company

Depending on who you ask some might suggest that Stout month is every month. It certainly can be if that’s your preference but for the rest of us – Stout month is February. Why February? It’s usually still cold, it’s the tail-end of winter when winter has lost its luster and it’s the month before Spring seemingly starts. In other words, February isn’t that great so what not spice it up with delicious dark beers?

Now we do appreciate Stouts at Hard 12 Brews but we aren’t going to try to drink a different Stout every day this month. Style fatigue isn’t a high priority around here – but we are going to explore the style in some different ways. It won’t always be on the blog so make sure to check out our Instagram at Hard12Brews.

The first Stout related feature of the month was an S’mores tasting and comparison. We (myself and two other friends) did a side by side comparison of the three S’mores offerings from WeldWerks, Cerebral and Off Color Brewing – below you will find our notes and scores – the different palates certainly shine through. Since the beers are very similar in style we aren’t doing a traditional review but a few basic notes followed by our individual scores out of 10.

Under The Stars – Cerebral Brewing Company

Tasting Notes: This beer by far had the most graham cracker-like aroma. There was a sense of the sweet marshmallow throughout the beer – a backend with caramelized sugar. It was creamy with more of a charred finish.

Scores: Alysia-8, Meg-8 and Cortney-7

Dino Smores – Off Color Brewing Company

Tasting Notes: This beer immediately hit you with the roasty and toasty aroma. There was a hint of chocolate with an upfront taste of the sweet marshmallow – the least sweet of the group. This beer more than the other two felt like you were hanging around the campfire.

Scores: Alysia-7.5, Meg-8 and Cortney-8.5

S’mores Achromatic – WeldWerks Brewing Company 

Tasting Notes: The nose was strong with toasted marshmallow sweetness. The beer was sweet, viscous and grahamy. There was minimal toast or roast flavors – just enough to enhance the traditional s’more flavor and cut through some of the overall sweetness.

Scores: Alysia-9, Meg-9 and Cortney-8

Final Verdict: Like everything that is so great about the craft beer world – there is an S’mores Stout for every palate – we’re trying our best to hold onto at least one to enjoy around the campfire this summer.