Opt for the Cream Stout instead of the Chocolate Bock
Written: Dec 12 '08 (Updated Feb 20 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: great taste of chocolate, caramel and deeply-roasted malts; smooth finish
Cons: very heavy body; leaves a dry aftertaste
The Bottom Line: My pick for the most underrated beer in the Samuel Adams line.
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| Chad9976's Full Review: Sam Adams Cream Stout 12oz |
When people think of stouts, they tend to think of a beer milkshake and that’s not really an accurate depiction of the style. If only lightweights were more acquainted with drinker-friendly styles such as Samuel Adams Cream Stout. Despite the name, the beer has a fairly flat body, but a rich, creamy, roasted taste that’s surprisingly sweet and absolutely delicious!
POUR, COLOR AND AROMA
I like a beer that pours smoothly and Samuel Adams Cream Stout pours perfectly with zero kickback and forms a perfectly-proportioned, dark tan, foamy head. The body is nearly opaque black with just the slightest hint of dark ruby red upon close inspection. The aroma is fantastic with a deeply-roasted, chocolaty scent readily detectable.
TASTE
I like a beer with a deeply-roasted taste and I also like beer that’s sweet rather than bitter. Fortunately, Samuel Adams Cream Stout combines both of these qualities into one drink.
Whereas many stouts have a similar taste of roasted malts, this beer doesn’t have the dry, bitter taste of a Guinness or other such stouts. Chocolate and caramel malts are very distinct ingredients and give the beer a deep, rich, subtly sweet flavor. It also has an underlying creaminess, even though the body is quite flat. It does leave a bit of a dry aftertaste, but this is a small price to pay for such an otherwise good beer.
FINISH
Most stouts tend to have a dry, bitter taste and can make the drinker wince a little as they finish it. But since Samuel Adams Cream Stout has such a rich, deep taste it’s no surprise its finish is smooth and velvety.
BODY
Despite having the word “cream” in its name, this beer does not have a milkshake-like body. In fact, it doesn’t even come in a can with a nitrogen widget like many other stouts. Straight out of the bottle Samuel Adams Cream Stout appears to have a thin body not unlike a porter or bock. However, it becomes apparently very quickly the beer does indeed have a creamy quality which explains why it has a heavy body feel.
At 4.9% ABV, this brew is actually quite mild as far as potency, but at 190 calories per bottle it’s definitely a hefty brew that will stick to your ribs. I was able to drink two bottles back to back, and even though I enjoyed both, I doubt I’d be able to drink a third.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Recently I paid $17 for a bottle of Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock, but in retrospect, that was a bit of a rip-off since I could have just bought this beer instead. Its chocolate taste is more potent, less dry, richer and finishes much cleaner. This might be the most underrated and underappreciated beer in the Sam Adams line, but I can’t figure out why.
OTHER STOUTS:
Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (3)
Guinness Draught Stout (4)
Guinness Extra Stout (4)
Rogue Chocolate Stout (5)
Rogue Shakespeare Stout (5)
Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout (5)
Saranac Vanilla Stout (4)
St. Ambroise Oatmeal Stout (5)
Young's Double Chocolate Stout (3)
ALSO BY SAMUEL ADAMS:
Sam Adams Light (3)
Samuel Adams Black Lager (4)
Samuel Adams Boston Ale (4)
Samuel Adams Boston Lager (4)
Samuel Adams Brown Ale (4)
Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat (3)
Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock (3)
Samuel Adams Double Bock (1)
Samuel Adams Hefeweizen (4)
Samuel Adams Honey Porter (2)
Samuel Adams Irish Red (4)
Samuel Adams Octoberfest (3)
Samuel Adams Old Fezziwig Ale (5)
Samuel Adams Pale Ale (3)
Samuel Adams Scotch Ale (2)
Samuel Adams Summer Ale (3)
Samuel Adams Winter Lager (5)
NOTE: watch the video version of this review at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zM-r5KIxMM
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Chad9976
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Member: Chad Polenz
Location: Albany, New York
Reviews written: 664
Trusted by: 149 members
About Me:Check out Chad'z Beer Reviews on YouTube
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