Hogshead Gilpin Black GOld
Jake Gardner, head brewer, Westbound & Down in Idaho Springs, Colorado
“I can’t not be a homer, so I have to go with Hogshead Gilpin Black Gold. That beer changed my life—it quite literally kept me on my career path and kept me at the Hog for five great years. The use of brown malt—to accomplish a layered complexity of baker’s chocolate, toffee, and a hint of roast—can keep one at the bar far longer than is appropriate. On cask, divine!”
Deschutes Obsidian Stout
John Mallett, VP of operations, Bell’s Brewery in Comstock, Michigan
“Crushing pint after pint of artfully poured Guinness, elbow-to-elbow in crowded rooms around Boston, paved the path to a lifelong love of the dark. That said, when American brewers adapted the style to incorporate great PNW hops, beers like Deschutes Obsidian Stout arose. A full range of dark malt flavors in this consistently well-executed beer plays beautifully with just enough hops to declare their geography, and a low enough ABV to allow a proper drinkability assessment. Barkeep, can you pull me another?”
Carlsberg Carnegie Porter
David Berg, brewmaster, August Schell Brewing in New Ulm, Minnesota
“Granted, I haven’t had a Carnegie Porter in probably 20 years. It was the first time I had a porter where I thought, ‘This is an imperial stout, but [with] manageable alcohol.’ Between the bitter chocolate, licorice, and dry finish, it is an amazing beer to me. It’s hard to pack that complexity into a sub-6 percent beer, but they do it seemingly with ease.”