tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post4540247957417373943..comments2024-03-29T05:58:25.823-04:00Comments on Seen Through a Glass: Post-Tut: Thos. Hooker Imperial Porter and Tough SteakLew Brysonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04084380741402026573noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-41186955247575260062007-02-15T07:27:00.000-05:002007-02-15T07:27:00.000-05:00"My only complaint was that it tended a bit toward..."My only complaint was that it tended a bit towards the imperial stout style, but you know?"<BR/><BR/>Because of the chocolate wheat used, probably. Tends to add more roast than smooth chocolate sometimes. Plus this years Impy Porter is less hoppy and it shows, like you said. It used to be a Tettnang driven hop bomb malt monster. Very Porter-ish. But now it's mellower and Stout-ier. But still a killer brew like you said.<BR/><BR/>Glad you enjoyed!<BR/>Cheers!Lorenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13913987288354432001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-35567179260013158882007-02-12T11:22:00.000-05:002007-02-12T11:22:00.000-05:00Thanks again Lew - write that article soon. I want...Thanks again Lew - write that article soon. I want someone to clear this whole thing up once and for all!Stonchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15927490011165896353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-7177324705247495572007-02-12T10:30:00.000-05:002007-02-12T10:30:00.000-05:00"My previous understanding was that "stout" was ju..."My previous understanding was that "stout" was just an adjective (meaning "strong") Arthur Guinness applied to his porter (producing the full name "Extra Stout Porter"), and that over the years the porter was dropped and the term "stout" began to be seen as a style, where in fact it's just an alternative name for porter."<BR/><BR/>Well, hang on. You're right on porter being dropped over the years, but dry stout, the beer Arthur Guinness created (or caused to be created, more accurately) is definitely a different beer from any porter I've ever had. Porter does not have the burnt bitter bite of a good dry stout. There is a difference...the problem lies in that the difference is more pronounced in some beers than in others. <BR/><BR/>The whole continuum issue is more a result of the wide variety of beers called "stout," ranging from dry stout through "foreign export" stout, oatmeal stout, milk stout, chocolate stout (anyone else feel like a cookie?), oyster stout, imperial stout, Russian imperial stout, and even imperial oatmeal stout...brewers have found stout a fun style to experiment with. <BR/><BR/>But stout and porter are not simply alternative names for the same beer, and I didn't mean to imply that. There is some overlap, but that's more down to brewers being sloppy, ill-informed, or just plain uncaring. It gets even more complicated when you find out that some porters are brewed with lager yeasts -- legitimately, in my considered opinion -- and even some stouts -- not so legitimately, in my humble opinion. Much of this goes on 'under the radar' of the typical beer drinker, and even the typical beer enthusiast, but of such stuff is the more interesting bits of my job made.Lew Brysonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04084380741402026573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-91255484887241395802007-02-12T10:13:00.000-05:002007-02-12T10:13:00.000-05:00Thanks Lew - I look forward to hopefully reading a...Thanks Lew - I look forward to hopefully reading an article by you on this subject. Your brief response is more informative than any other explanation I have seen, that's for sure. My previous understanding was that "stout" was just an adjective (meaning "strong") Arthur Guinness applied to his porter (producing the full name "Extra Stout Porter"), and that over the years the porter was dropped and the term "stout" began to be seen as a style, where in fact it's just an alternative name for porter.Stonchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15927490011165896353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-24682041854591839082007-02-12T08:04:00.000-05:002007-02-12T08:04:00.000-05:00Oh, my goodness, that's a huge kettle of fish, Sto...Oh, my goodness, that's a huge kettle of fish, Stonch. The pat answer is very simple: Porter pre-dates stout, and stout was 'created' when Arthur Guinness put roasted barley in his porter to escape malt taxes. <BR/><BR/>I strongly suspect things were not that simple and direct, but that's not really here nor there, because in the intervening years the line between stout and porter has become a very blurred divider indeed. The only thing I AM sure of is that people who offer sharp, clear differences between stout and porter don't know enough about the topic. I view stout and porter as part of a continuum of dark ales, without sharp dividers. <BR/><BR/>Dr. Michael Lewis (an American brewing academic) rather contentiously said that, judging from the array of commercial beers, stout apparently is any dark beer the brewer chooses to label as "stout." That's a bit facetious, but there's a HUGE nugget of truth at the core.<BR/><BR/>That's going to have to do for now, as this is definitely something I can and plan to sell writing on, and it behooves me to shut up so I can continue to make a living!Lew Brysonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04084380741402026573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7315262155858800734.post-62907301387382165422007-02-12T04:54:00.000-05:002007-02-12T04:54:00.000-05:00What exactly is the historical basis for different...What exactly is the historical basis for differentiating between a "stout" and a "porter"?Stonchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15927490011165896353noreply@blogger.com