# Who in God's name puts chocolate in beer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** beer\ **Created:** [December 24, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230 "2015-12-24T01:22:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/1 "2015-12-24T01:22:42Z")
Mrs Piper got a Beer Advent Calendar this year and has been working her way through it. I came home from work and she said “There’s a beer on the counter from my calendar. I didn’t like it so you can have it.” I took one swig and spat it out. Chocolate? Who thinks chocolate, sweet, sweet no less, should be put into a nice stout, ruining it?!? Dumped the bottle down the drain and am now using a nice Australian Shiraz to cleanse my palate. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/2 "2015-12-24T01:30:18Z")
[Young’s Double Chocolate Stout.](http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/664/73/) 90/92 score. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/3 "2015-12-24T01:34:34Z")
The original “chocolate” stout was named because its taste is reminiscent of chocolate. No chocolate is added. More modern styles actually add some. I don’t mind it when it’s in a variety pack but I wouldn’t buy a whole case of just chocolate beer. Wait’ll you hear about oyster stout. Same idea - it originally didn’t have any molluscs, but some brewers might add some. It was designed to pair with oysters. Coffee stout as well. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/4 "2015-12-24T01:47:08Z")
There’s a good number of highly regarded chocolate beers out there but, I gotta side with **Northern Piper** for the most part, here. It doesn’t really do it for me. That said, I do get along with the coffee flavors, though. ETA: Yes, to the post above, there is a malt called “chocolate malt” because of its dark color and chocolate flavor notes. [Here’s an example](http://www.northernbrewer.com/simpsons-chocolate-malt). ---
**Author:** ![Onthefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9de053/32.png) [@Onthefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onthefly)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/5 "2015-12-24T02:10:06Z")
Any chocolate stouts that are unwanted may be sent to me for Eco-friendly disposal. Most of them are good. A few are great! ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/6 "2015-12-24T02:20:51Z")
**Who in God’s name puts chocolate in beer?** You probably wouldn’t like Ben & Jerry’s Salted Caramel Brownie, from New Belgium Brewing, I’m thinking… ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/7 "2015-12-24T02:24:55Z")
Probably the same guy that put out that cherry beer I had years ago that I wouldn’t pour on my car battery terminals to free up the crud. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/8 "2015-12-24T02:54:43Z")
I actually should have known just from the label. It was called “Beatnik Beer” and had a pic of a scruffy beatnik, bearded and with black frame glasses, wearing a Santa cap. The whole thing looked ugly, and I didn’t even see the “chocolate” on the label. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/9 "2015-12-24T02:56:30Z")
> [@Onthefly](#): > > Any chocolate stouts that are unwanted may be sent to me for Eco-friendly disposal. Most of them are good. A few are great! You can come and suck it out of my sink trap if you want. Liberty Hall! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/10 "2015-12-24T03:09:53Z")
I don’t know about actual chocolate-accented beer, but I find that nibbling chocolate goes very nicely with beer. A lot better than the typical beer and pizza. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/11 "2015-12-24T03:20:21Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > There’s a good number of highly regarded chocolate beers out there but, I gotta side with **Northern Piper** for the most part, here. It doesn’t really do it for me. That said, I do get along with the coffee flavors, though. > > ETA: Yes, to the post above, there is a malt called “chocolate malt” because of its dark color and chocolate flavor notes. [Here’s an example](http://www.northernbrewer.com/simpsons-chocolate-malt). Makes sense; a lot of chocolate’s flavor is from the Maillard reactions during the roasting of the cocoa beans, much like coffee. Roasting malt would do much the same thing and have a similar flavor if done right. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/12 "2015-12-24T03:28:27Z")
That I could probably live with. This stuff tasted like two or three cubes of baking chocolate had been added to each bottle. ---
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/13 "2015-12-24T04:11:33Z")
I tried one glass of chocolate-laced red wine and poured the remaining contents of glass and bottle down the sink. Never again. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/14 "2015-12-24T04:20:58Z")
Please report back if you ever come across beer with Skittles in it. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/15 "2015-12-24T05:01:09Z")
The horror! ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/16 "2015-12-24T05:10:46Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Please report back if you ever come across beer with Skittles in it. No such product exists sir. You must have dreamt it. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/17 "2015-12-24T05:30:15Z")
There are a few breweries that add cheap flavors to their beer and it’s terrible. The first one I can think of is O’Fallon - awful stuff, tastes like syrup is added. And then there are some chocolate and vanilla porters and stouts I’ve tried that are divine. The first one of those I can think of is the Black Chocolate Stout from Brooklyn Brewery. It’s thick and deep and dark and what sweetness it has is part of stout flavor and at most bittersweet as an undertone. It’s also over 300 calories per bottle. I sip and savor just one. While there is a “chocolate malt” used in brewing, there is no actual chocolate in this beer. ---
**Author:** ![nachtmusick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ac91a4/32.png) [@nachtmusick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nachtmusick)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/18 "2015-12-24T11:44:48Z")
Any beer drinker who is old enough to have weathered the 90’s knows that beer should just taste like beer. Pumpkin beer, blackberry beer, pepper beer…No, just no. Not that chocolate isn’t a respectable hint to a dark malty stout or porter, but chocolate shouldn’t be the first impression. Ick. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/19 "2015-12-24T13:12:18Z")
A local brew pub makes a chocolate-cranberry stout which is awesome. ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/20 "2015-12-24T13:39:49Z")
> [@nachtmusick](#): > > Any beer drinker who is old enough to have weathered the 90’s knows that beer should just taste like beer. Why? Sincerely, why are plain beers _inherently_ superior to you? And _which_ particular beer should beer taste like? There’re such vast differences between different styles; stouts and pilsners are total opposites. What about wheat beers, wood-aged beers, etc? We’re (especially those of us in the US) in the middle of a frickin’ beer renaissance. Creativity and experimentation have lead to a stunning variety of beers and styles. If you don’t like some or most of them, no one’s forcing you to drink them. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230.md?page=2)