STOUT AND MORE STOUT!!!

It’s been a while since I shared some of my tastings with you. Well, I took some time off because I did a Dry February. Mmm, mostly dry. Okay, some dry.

My first brew is a Colorado brew and it’s a winner in my book. Big Bad Baptist, by Epic Brewing. The label says it’s an Imperial Stout brewed with cacao nibs and coffee added aged in whiskey barrels. By the way, is it “whiskey” or “whisky?” Anyway, this bad boy is INCREDIBLE. Smooth, rich, just a little but not too sweet, and bold. Did I say it is rich and bold? OMG. Let me just have a couple Big Bad Baptists and I’m ready to let one of my lives go. I have to say, I was initially drawn to this stout because of the name. I love it. I don’t know if you know this, but I was a Southern Baptist cat in one of my lives. So, I truly enjoy poking a little fun because we SBC cats take ourselves so seriously.

Here’s one of my favorites. How do you tell the difference between a Methodist and a Southern Baptist? The Methodists will wave hello to each other in the liquor stores. Here’s another. Why do Southern Baptists not have sex standing up? Because someone will think they’re dancing. I’ve got a million of them. Oh, beware, the ABV for your Big Bad Baptist is a heavenly 11-12%. Their website is epicbrewing.com. Epic Brewing started in Utah (can you believe it?) and expanded into Colorado (no surprise). This one gets five paw prints.

Okay, so you know that Buster and I are in New Mexico. My second tasting is a New Mexico Brew. This stout is brewed by La Cumbre Brewing Company in Albuquerque. The website is lacumbrebrewing.com. La Cumbre calls it Malpais Stout. An aside, malpais is an area in western New Mexico which is basically the badlands. Rough terrain. La Cumbre describes Malpais Stout this way, “A meal in a glass. Brewed with 7 different malts, you should be ready for a full onslaught of creamy stout intensity. Broadly in the style of a Foreign Extra Stout, this is our heaviest and most intense year-round offering.” ABV is 7.5%. Okay, I think any decent stout is a meal in a glass. This stout won its fair share of awards in the early 2010s. For me, it is drinkable and low-key. However, I prefer some other stouts if I’m sitting down for a meal. I’ll award Malpais Stout with one and a half paw prints.

Last and in no way least, I sampled an imperial stout brewed by the Sante Fe Brewing Company. This is a keeper my friends. Java Stout. The brewer didn’t try to over-hype this one on the label. The brewer’s marketing people say, “Oh hey. You seem a little tired. Maybe you should have some “coffee.” And by coffee, we mean “beer.” And by beer, we mean “a can of this imperial stout made with locally roasted coffee beans.” The ABV is 8.0% and the brewer’s website is santefebrewing.com. I truly enjoyed this one. I flopped my tail back and forth the whole time I was sipping on this beauty. It’s got a lot of body and mouth feel, so it instantly transports me away from my boring water bowl. The flavor was rich and complex. I experienced the nuance of the coffee. The sweetness was totally understated. This one gets four and a half paw prints.

Your most wanted friend,

Betty