Bare Knuckle Stout

Brewed by Anheuser-Busch InBev
Style: Dry Stout
St. Louis, Missouri USA

Probably one of the worst stouts i have ever put in my mouth. Weak in flavor, almost like a watery body. Very unimpressive for a stout. Hey AB let the micros make the stouts and porters you stick to you mass produced lagers.

Tap. Light aromas all around, roasted and coffee for the malt, resin and maybe earth for the hops and yeast. Head is large, off-white, creamy with good lacing and is fully lasting. Color is dark brown with a red tint. Flavor starts lightly sweet, moderately acidic and a touch sour, then the short finish is lightly acidic and bitter. Palate is watery, light to medium and has a soft to lively carbonation. An interesting attempt by AB. Looks good, tastes weak.

Great appearance. Malts were roasty and refreshing. Not a lot of depth to the beer, but an average overall stout.

I had this on tap at the Wintergarden Bar in Livonia, MI. A friend actually got it for me, as it was there beer of the month, and I had never heard of it, but it only took one sip to realize that this wasn’t some small time beer. I think it’s AB’s attempt at competing with Guinness. It certainly looked the part, and in a blind test, I would be lying if I said I could tell them apart. Oh well..

The Library Bar in Des Moines was democratically selected by an unbiased panel to have the best nachos in Des Moines. I can attest that this is very much true, and that the Nachos are amazing. The quality level of the beer at this tavern has had far less consideration, perhaps they were too focused on Nachos. I freaking love seeing this stuff on tap though, I remember for like three months in 05’ when every bar got it in then immediately took it off tap. There are a rare few pubs that still serve it and well I guess I let nostalgia get the best of me the other day. The stuff pours dark, like any of the other nitro draught stouts, but they couldn’t even get the head right on this stuff not terribly tight, a little too fizzy and way too thin, leaving very little lace. The aroma is faint a little musty but hints at some chocolate notes maybe a little wet hops, maybe I’m just imagining things. The flavor is largely bland and light but there are some nice things happening in the background, certainly some coffee and no doubt some weird burnt notes. The palate skips right past creamy and dives headfirst into wateriness. Just another wonderful failed attempt by AB to exploit a particular demographic.

Draft at Phia Airport. Poured a nice black with a tan head. Aromas of roasted malts and coffee. Had a weak stout taste. Low carbination and and solid flavors. Not a bad stout but lacks some robustness I was hoping for. Not bad though.

black cascading foam pour with 2 finger brown head.aroma of roasted malt with malt coffee taste, harsh hops finish. Note: at time of tasting i had no idea this was a product of anheuser! we done.

Draft. Heavy blackish brown body with a good amount of solid stout head. Aromas typical of stout-heavily roasted malt, but with some out of place high alcohol notes. Fairly smooth mouthfeel, slightly astringent. Good amount of bittersweet chocolate with a little coffee. A decent stout.