Thursday, March 1, 2012

Chocolate Beer

Valentine's day came and went last month. As I've mentioned many times, in Japan women give chocolates to men on Valentine's, and the men reciprocate on "White Day" a month later. There was no way for Ritsuko to top last years amazing success, so she kept it simple this year, with a duo of chocolate-flavoured beers from a local brewery in Okayama. They are both very good as beers, and do not come across as a ploy or a stunt at all.

Chocolate Beer
White-chocolate beer, and dark chocolate beer. Both from a small brewery in Okayama.

The dark beer is great. It has a clear, strong cacao flavour with a pleasing bitterness that meshes well with the burnt-sugar tones of the beer itself. It's not sweet or cloying at all, but just brings a very filling, mature taste. People sometimes describe stouts as having a chocolate tone, and this beer plays up that flavour with a well-balanced dose of the real thing. This beer I would be happy to drink on a regular basis if I could.

The light beer is a nice full-bodied beer with a bit of cacao butter for flavouring. The effect is rather like that of a weissbier but with less acidity and a more even, milky tone. It's a good beer but the chocolate flavour is muted enough that it would be easy to miss unless you knew to look for it. It's a pleasant and flavourful beer but not as distinctive as the dark one, perhaps.

4 comments:

  1. I've had the dark. Delish. I'd like to try the white.

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  2. As I wrote, it's not up to the same level as the dark one. Fun to try, but not a beer I would seek out a second time.

    I do want another bottle or three of the dark one.

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  3. Never had a chocolate beer brewed in Japan. This is now on my list. Thanks for the introduction!

    (I really shouldn't be thinking of beer at 9:30 in the morning)

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  4. @Eido, is there ever a reason not to think about beer? ^_^

    A few years ago there was a chocolate beer made in cooperation by Royce chocolate maker and one of the big breweries. It wasn't bad, but this one is way better; really something I'd enjoy simply as a good beer.

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