Goose Island The Muddy Imperial Licorice Stout: Day 21 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a black licorice infused beer – oh, oh! Black licorice is a flavour I generally don’t appreciate in beer so I was hoping it would only be a subtle note and not an overpowering one like some beers out there.
Aroma and Appearance: It pours a very dark brown colour with some small bubbles the climb up the glass towards a thin layer of beige foam. The aroma is very well toasted bread and roasted marshmallows with hints of chocolate, licorice and caramel.
Flavour: I could taste lots of dark coffee up front, loads of it followed by burnt marshmallow soot and subtle black licorice in the middle with a dry cocoa like finish.
Overall Impression: Phew, the licorice was there but not too much! This was actually a good palate trainer so, if you want to learn to appreciate licorice notes in beer more The Muddy would be a good starter beer.
Rating: Very good at 7/10, comparable to many of the approachable Imperial Stouts out there with some subtle added licorice notes.
Food Pairing: Pick up or make some butter tarts loaded with raisins for this one, they’ll work well with the licorice.
I found a quick audio interview with Brett Porter talking about how he made this beer. I always like to hear brewers talk about their craft so it’s a good quick watch/listen if you have a few minutes.
West Coast Beer Geek 