Product: Black Chocolate Stout Producer: Brooklyn Brewery Approximate Retail Value: $16 for a 12-pack Category: Beer Country of Origin: New York, USA Reviewer: Gene Hughes The F Words: Flavor – Very maltish and bittersweet, with a faint hint of chocolate. Feel – Dark and thick. Finish – Leaves the taste of chocolate on the tongue.

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If you are a resident of New York, have you ever sat around and thought: ‘Gee, I wish I lived in the beer-making countryside, where barley is grown and breweries abound?’ If so, you may want to start attending those monthly meetings again. But rejoice, New Yorkers; good beers are made right here, practically in your backyard, courtesy of the Brooklyn Brewery.

Brooklyn Brewery is one of New York State’s finest breweries (plus the name earns instant street cred with New York City dwellers based on the name alone), brewing their regular and seasonal beers. One seasonal beer in particular is nothing short of a stroke of genius, combining two of America’s most loved concoctions: beer and chocolate. I speak, of course, of Black Chocolate Stout.

Only brewed during the winter season, Black Chocolate Stout is brewed with several different varieties of chocolate and roasted malts to achieve a rich black color, a thick, smooth taste, and a head on top of each glass you could float a bottle cap on. This beer is definitely for anyone who likes dark beers—yes, I’m talking to you, Guinness drinkers. Indulge your sweet tooth a little.

The appeal of this drink starts with its rich chocolaty aroma, which, combined with the heady scent of brewed malt beer, is surprisingly pleasing. This pleasantness is continued with the first sip, giving conflicting tones of bitter and sweet that resolve as you swallow, take in the taste, and let out a satisfied sigh. Repeat these actions until buzzed. The wonderful thing about this beer is that while it has definite sweet overtones, it’s not sweet enough make your teeth ache; the beer has a perfect balance in tastes that makes this unlikely combination refreshing.

Serving this drink is easy; as with all beers, you’ll want to let it chill before drinking, otherwise those refreshing qualities will turn stale awfully quick. I would also recommend serving it, rather than in a pint glass, in a pilsner glass or other glass with a curved top, in order to hold the head at the top and focus the natural aroma of the beer.

Again, Black Chocolate Stout is only brewed by the Brooklyn Brewery during the winter season, so be sure to get a head start now and stock up before beer drinkers in the know snatch it from your very grasp. And just think: If Black Chocolate Stout came in heart-shaped 12-packs, you would finally have the perfect Valentine’s Day present for your boyfriend.