HB&B Blog — Stout

The Beer Lover's Table: Butterscotch Pudding Pots with Pumpkin Spiced Caramel and Yonder Brewing Coconut Florentine Stout

Claire Bullen Somerset Stout Yonder Brewing

The Beer Lover's Table: Butterscotch Pudding Pots with Pumpkin Spiced Caramel and Yonder Brewing Coconut Florentine Stout

I should confess: I’m not much of a dessert person. Most days, I would rather have a wedge of cheese than a slice of cake at the end of a meal. Whenever I have a chocolate dessert, I last about three spoonfuls before getting overwhelmed by its intensity. I’ll choose a plain, buttery croissant over one filled with almond paste or glazed with vanilla. But every now and then, I find myself craving something sweet – usually around this time of year, when there’s a new chill in the air and the nights are drawing in. Blame it on vestigial...

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Fundamentals #140 — Siren Crescendo 10th Anniversary Imperial Stout

Fundamentals Imperial Stout Matthew Curtis Siren Craft Brew Stout

Fundamentals #140 — Siren Crescendo 10th Anniversary  Imperial Stout

Eight and a half years ago, I attended an off-flavour beer tasting hosted by beer writer Melissa Cole. Melissa took us through everything from DMS to diacetyl, enhancing our beer knowledge by putting us through the ringer [mmmm, still remember that baby sick - Ed]. At the end of the tasting, a couple of Kiwis approached me and asked if I was the beer blogger Matthew Curtis. It turns out I was, and I was currently in a state of wondering if I should pack it all in and take this beer writing full time. The couple, Jen and Glenn, told me they were opening a bottle...

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The Beer Lover's Table: Eggnog Latte Cookies and Full Circle Brew Co Parkin at the Moon Imperial Stout

Beer Lover's Table Claire Bullen Full Circle Imperial Stout Newcastle Stout

The Beer Lover's Table: Eggnog Latte Cookies and Full Circle Brew Co Parkin at the Moon Imperial Stout

As an American, I generally look forward not to mince pies every December, but to Christmas cookies. Why stick to one treat when you can have a rotating cast of four or five? Who needs to eat that many raisins and dried fruits in one sitting? (If you are going the mince pie route, at least do yourself a favour and deep-fry ‘em, and serve with plenty of brandy cream.) This year, I had the pleasure of adding a brand new recipe to my rotation: these eggnog latte cookies, inspired by an Instagram reel from Justine Snacks. These cookies really are...

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Fundamentals #132 - Newbarns x Omnipollo Complicated Dark Beer

Fundamentals Imperial Stout Matthew Curtis Newbarns Omnipollo Scotland Stout

Fundamentals #132 - Newbarns x Omnipollo Complicated  Dark Beer

If you think of classic styles like mild, bitter or even an old-school West Coast IPA, malt plays a key role. However, as craft brewers increasingly seek to experiment with alternative ingredients – such as fruit, vanilla, chocolate or coffee beans – the flavour and character that malt gives a beer has increasingly slinked into the background. In terms of dark beers – where malt forms the central identity of the style – this has come to a point where artificial flavourings now play an increasingly vocal role in styles like pastry stout. I’m not against experimentation and try not to dump on other people’s...

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Fundamentals #129 — Brouwerij Kees Colin the Caterpillar Imperial Pastry Stout

Fundamentals Imperial Stout Kees Matthew Curtis Stout The Netherlands

Fundamentals #129 — Brouwerij Kees Colin the Caterpillar Imperial Pastry Stout

Remember the feeling of being a kid, and standing in front of the pick’n’mix counter?  All of those colours and shapes: fizzy cola bottles, sour cherries, red bootlaces, liquorice allsorts, and all the chocolate buttons you could eat. The anticipation when asking your parents or guardian if you could have a bag, the release experienced when it was granted – imagine if you could bottle that… Turns out you can – in grown-up, alcoholic form too. Over the past couple of years, pastry stouts have become de rigueur on bottle shop shelves, from instigators like Sweden’s Omnipollo to Amundsen in...

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