10 Beers To Try At Your Next Football Watch Party
Josh Christie's writing has appeared in print in The Portland Phoenix, The Maine Sunday Telegram, and other publications and online as a featured columnist at Ratebeer.com. He also founded and writes for Brews And Books, a beer-centric site that shares news in the brewing, publishing, bookselling and beer worlds along with reviews and editorial content. He is the author of Maine Beer: Brewing in Vacationland and lives in Yarmouth, Maine.
Chad Polenz is best known for his popular beer website chadzbeerreviews.com and his column with the Albany Times-Union. He is an avid home brewer, and has visited dozens of breweries all over the world. He and Josh Christie are the authors of the most definitive guide to dark brews on the market, The Handbook Of Porters & Stouts, out now from Cider Mill Press and available wherever books are sold.
Looking for a playoff caliber line-up of beer recommendations for your game night gatherings? Score every time with this definitive list of porters and stouts. You won't ever find yourself third-and-long with one of these in hand!
For the perfect brew to pair with your finger food, try a Morke Pumpernickel Porter, or a Santa Fe Imperial Java Stout. The Czar Imperial Stout is a good strong brew for either celebrating or lamenting the end of a game, and Boulevard Bully Porters and Founders Porters are perfect for enjoying throughout the action, from start to finish.
A full list of our top ten recommendations is below—each one is a touchdown!
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Boulevard Bully Porter
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.31
A dark-colored, medium-bodied beer with a prominent burnt, roasted malt aroma and flavor, and an equally prominent hop aroma, flavor, and bitterness.
Founders Porter
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.44
Between the flavorful but tame palate, the gentle mouthfeel, and the smooth finish, it's difficult not to throw this beer down as if it were a shot.
Morke Pumpernickel Porter
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.97
This beer tastes like rye bread. Where one would expect the dark flavors, one gets a spicy rye with bittersweet chocolate and toasted nuts.
Alaskan Smoked Porter
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.108
The malts used in the brew are dried over Alaskan alder, which gives the porter its distinctive smoky flavor.
Funky Buddha Maple Bacon Coffee Porter
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.118
Waves of sweet malt, toffee, and roast waft off the glass, and is that a hint of smoke? The maple syrup flavor pleasantly lingers. This is a fantastic, world-class beer.
Santa Fe Imperial Java Stout
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.217
Because their dark, toasty, burnt flavors often overlap, few ingredients work together so well in a beer as roasted malt and coffee beans. This stout is huge in coffee aroma and flavor.
Avery Brewing Co - The Czar Imperial Stout
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.287
The taste is heavy on roasted malt and mocha, pleasantly balanced by the bitter bite of hops.
Left Hand Milk Stout Nitro
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.373
The stout has brown sugar, coffee, and a hint of vanilla on the nose and the same elements on the palate. It's the love child of a stout and a latte with 6% ABV.
Allagash Black
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.422
The flavor is a complex trip, starting with coffee up front before coming around to a mocha finish. The oats used in the recipe provide a silky smoothness not unlike an oatmeal stout.
Casper White Stout
The Handbook of Porters and Stouts, p.425
The nose is butterscotch, white chocolate, vanilla cake, caramel, graham cracker, and shortbread. Full-bodied for such a lightly-colored ale, it has a nice, peppery finish. A hint of sweetness is balanced by a nice addition of hops.
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Chad Polenz is best known for his popular beer website chadzbeerreviews.com and his column with the Albany Times-Union. He is an avid home brewer, and has visited dozens of breweries all over the world. He and Josh Christie are the authors of the most definitive guide to dark brews on the market, The Handbook Of Porters & Stouts, out now from Cider Mill Press and available wherever books are sold.