Rogue Ales Hazelutely Choctabulous Candy Bar in a Bottle Sweet Stout at 5.7% ABV | 51 IBU (C$9.99 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 16-Feb-2017)
Appearance: nearly opaque brown with one fat finger of rocky beige head settling moderately quickly to a thick persistent cap, spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: hazelnut, peanut, chocolate. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, medium duration finish. (3/5)
I debated even picking this thing up, let alone buying it – frankly, it feels like my track record with Rogue has been more misses than hits for a long time now. But then, I remembered the good old days of Dead Guy Ale, Brutal IPA, Yellow Snow, and, yes, Hazelnut Brown Nectar, and I got a little misty and said why not. (The less said about Chipotle Ale and Santa’s Private Reserve, the better. Let me have the moment.) And, damn, if this doesn’t actually work! It really does smell and taste like a nutty chocolate bar – although much like my impressions of the Hazelnut Brown Nectar, I’m getting just as much peanut as hazelnut. (Which isn’t a criticism, because I like peanuts just fine, just an observation.) I was worried it would be too sweet, and yeah, it’s sweet – but that sweetness is balanced very well against the frankly surprisingly high bitterness so well that neither really dominates. (15/20)
On the subject of bitterness, there’s an error somewhere. My bottle said 75 IBU, but also 75.3% AA, and I think they mistakenly put the same 75 value on there as IBU as well. The Rogue web site says 51 IBU, and that makes more sense, since the Hazelnut Brown Nectar is 33 IBU and the Chocolate Stout is 69 IBU – I don’t see how you could possibly get a higher bitterness than either of your ingredients! I’m going with 51 as the correct number.
7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
