November 2008 Archives

62/1000: Mikkeller

JB: Before we even drink this I want to comment on the "Beer Geek Breakfast" thing. It seems to unnecessarily limit the audience. It's like having something that's the "beer for moms." That might help you a little bit with moms, but it ensures that no one else is ever going to drink it.
MM: It's the "Diet Coke" dilemma. They had marketed Diet Coke so strongly to women, they had to invent a new product for men. On the other hand, maybe production is so small, they only need beer geeks to drink it.
JB: But there are tons of beers like that, that are beer-geek-only. But they don't need to say it.
MM: I bet it's the American importers, not the producers, that tagged it that way.
JB: So, tasting it now, it's pretty sweet, not really different from a regular stout. Does this have "coffee" and "oatmeal" in it, or are those just the overtones they're talking about?
MM: It says it's a mix of a coffee and oatmeal stout. I've had "oat" stouts before.
JB: Like Samuel Smith.
MM: I have been drinking actual coffee, so it's very hard to detect a coffee flavor. Even a very coffee-heavy beer won't measure up to actual coffee.
JB: I'll give them that this is a decent breakfast beer, if you're going to have beer for breakfast.
MM: I won't give them that "there's a new taste adventure with every sip."
JB: I experienced no adventures in the drinking of this beer. Wait, here on the label, it says "oatmeal stout brewed with coffee." I'm going to have a sip of coffee.

MM: This makes me think we should start a 1000 coffees blog.
JB: It's somewhat comparable to coffee, but drinking it back to back with coffee really highlights the sweetness of the beer.
MM: It makes my coffee taste a lot better!
JB: Now you have poured coffee into your beer. I wouldn't have done that.
MM: The coffee smell it has now is good, though. I want you to try this. I propose that it tastes better.
JB: It cut the sweetness. And I like the temperature that it's at now, too.
MM: It's way better.