# 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:** 2
**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, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/21 "2015-12-24T15:06:23Z")
> [@zweisamkeit](#): > > 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. You aren’t in a beer renaissance. In the 1970’s there were about two dozen shitty brands of beer in the whole country and by the mid 90’s there were about a dozen breweries running in every City. _That_ was a beer renaissance. A lot of that new beer was only good in the sense that it was better than Coors. Today’s variety is welcome to me, but far from stunning. All I want is a sharp, well-crafted ale that tastes of nothing more than hops and barley. You can keep your undrinkable IPA’s and sour vomit beers. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/22 "2015-12-24T15:24:56Z")
Chocolate Stout is delicious. If you disagree than you are obviously wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/23 "2015-12-24T16:05:26Z")
I’ve had a chocolate stout once. Look, if I want you to boil a bunch of Tootsie rolls in Michelob and decant the soppy mess into a bottle, I’ll get back to you. Once was enough. Edit: that said, a local brewery makes [Black Mocha Stout](http://www.highlandbrewing.com/craft-brews/style/black-mocha-stout), without a smidge of actual chocolate in it, and it’s my favorite stout, rich and toasty and malty and weirdly perfect with onion rings. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/24 "2015-12-24T16:20:51Z")
Who drink Michelob these days? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/25 "2015-12-24T16:25:09Z")
Flavored beer. What have we come to? _Beer_ is the flavor!!! ---
**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, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/26 "2015-12-24T16:33:58Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I’ve had a chocolate stout once. Look, if I want you to boil a bunch of Tootsie rolls in Michelob and decant the soppy mess into a bottle, I’ll get back to you. Once was enough. to me, that’s UR DOIN IT RONG. The brewery I mentioned earlier has a couple fruit-flavored beers, and they keep it to just a “nose” or a hint of the fruit without being cloying. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/27 "2015-12-24T16:39:20Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Flavored beer. What have we come to? _Beer_ is the flavor!!! Precisely, if you have to add additional flavourings outside of the variation in grain, yeast, hops and water then you are doing it wrong. Same with coffee. Flavoured coffee is a satanic joke. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/28 "2015-12-24T16:41:20Z")
Our local Rogue Brewery [del]has made a deal with the devil[/del] struck a deal with a local donut bakery and come up with a line of “beers”…each of which my family has gotten me to try just to see the look on my face. They are Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale,Voodoo Doughnut Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Banana Ale, Voodoo Doughnut Lemon Chiffon Crueller Ale, Voodoo Doughnut Mango Astronaut Ale, and Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale. Of these I think the Lemon Chiffon Crueller Ale was the worst, having the lovely aftertaste of lemon Pledge. ---
**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, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/29 "2015-12-24T16:47:14Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Flavored beer. What have we come to? _Beer_ is the flavor!!! It’s hardly a new thing–since man discovered the joys of fermented malt, they’ve been putting all sun and sundry in there, including [chicken](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cock_ale), in a 17th century concoction known as “cock ale.” :eek: > [@](#): > > The Oxford English Dictionary, which describes Cock ale as “ale mixed with the jelly or minced meat of a boiled cock, besides other ingredients” There are actually lots of very good beers out there flavored with something other than hops. I’m generally more a malt-and-hops guy, but there have been fruit ales and spiced beers that I’ve grown to enjoy (like witbier, flavored with curacao orange peels and coriander, sahti flavored with juniper, the Belgian fruit lambics, etc.) I’m not so much a fan of the “dessert” flavored beers, though. Those are just silly. ---
**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, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/30 "2015-12-24T16:47:21Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Precisely, if you have to add additional flavourings outside of the variation in grain, yeast, hops and water then you are doing it wrong. > > Same with coffee. Flavoured coffee is a satanic joke. who knew the Belgians have been doing it wrong for centuries. **edit:** “Boiled Cock” sounds like the title track of a death metal album. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/31 "2015-12-24T16:57:46Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > It’s hardly a new thing–since man discovered the joys of fermented malt, they’ve been putting all sun and sundry in there, including [chicken](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cock_ale), in a 17th century concoction known as “cock ale.” :eek: > > There are actually lots of very good beers out there flavored with something other than hops. I’m generally more a malt-and-hops guy, but there have been fruit ales and spiced beers that I’ve grown to enjoy (like witbier, flavored with curacao orange peels and coriander, sahti flavored with juniper, the Belgian fruit lambics, etc.) I’m not so much a fan of the “dessert” flavored beers, though. Those are just silly. The ancients practiced human sacrifice, too. I guess it’s good that we’ve eliminated at least one barbaric practice!! 😉 ---
**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, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/32 "2015-12-24T17:00:59Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > who knew the Belgians have been doing it wrong for centuries. Exactly. If you’re into that “beer purity law” stuff slavishly, then you’d have to eliminate a whole lot of Belgian beers, which, even disregarding the fruit beers and the witbiers, the stuff that is generally unflavored like the trappist beers, contain candy sugar. You can still enjoy your Stella, though. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/33 "2015-12-24T17:06:11Z")
Hey, I have nothing against the folks who are into bland, flavorless beer. More of the good stuff for me ;). ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/34 "2015-12-24T17:11:22Z")
A girl friend introduced me to eating m&ms and drinking beer. The girl is gone, but I still have an occasional beer with m&ms. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/35 "2015-12-24T17:37:40Z")
How big is this advent calendar that it holds a whole beer? I also like chocolate stouts and chocolate oatmeal stouts and other flavored beers. My current favorite is a banana bread beer. It tastes like a normal ale but it smells like banana bread. It’s awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/36 "2015-12-24T17:41:18Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > [Young’s Double Chocolate Stout.](http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/664/73/) 90/92 score. Two cans of a four pack in my fridge right now. I like the stuff. ---
**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, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/37 "2015-12-24T18:41:02Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > who knew the Belgians have been doing it wrong for centuries. I did. I haven’t thought so for centuries, but I was solidly against them just as soon as I found out. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/38 "2015-12-24T18:53:25Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Voodoo Doughnut Lemon Chiffon Crueller Ale Jesus Christ. (Rogue was the one with the Tootsie Roll beer. Seriously, fuck Rogue.) ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/39 "2015-12-24T19:17:44Z")
I agree with the majority here. A good stout should be reminiscent of of coffee and/or chocolate, but that should come from the barley, not from actually adding the flavors. For one thing, it seems like cheating, but more fundamentally, it threatens to destroy the rich subtle flavors I want from a good stout. Last year, I discovered Oskar Blues Ten Fidy, which I loved. However, I didn’t realize they only make it in fall and winter, so I neglected to lay in a supply and had to suffer six months of deprivation. When the new batch was finally available this year, I was so excited, but then I found it way too boozy. I’m not sure what happened there. I’m going to keep it in cold storage for awhile to see if it mellows out. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230/40 "2015-12-24T19:25:39Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > who knew the Belgians have been doing it wrong for centuries. _Some_ Belgians have been doing it wrong for centuries. Other Belgians have perfected it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-gods-name-puts-chocolate-in-beer/741230.md?page=3)