Why is milk stout black

Case in point: milk stout. Milk stouts are dark, thick ales with very low carbonation. In general, they have notes of sweetened coffee, espresso, and chocolate.

The beer has the sweetness of milk without all the good stuff. What is young always turns old and stale, however, and the fresh, sweet taste of mild beers dies unless a fountain of youth elixir comes in as a savior. Enter lactose, the sugar found in milk.

Lactose is different from that yellow and white bag of Domino sugar in your pantry. But traditional beer yeasts , just like lactose-intolerant people, find lactose harder to digest than your everyday sugar crystals.

So, during the fermentation process, the lactose remains untouched, leaving a sweet, younger-tasting final beer.

Kieran G. Shaun L. Phil J. Sergey Z. Jonathan H. Purchased at The Devonshire Tap House. Espen Antonsen A. Anders A. Oleg Y. John Y. Geir F. Jack C. Jan V. Smooth and pleasant enough, but rather bitter for a milk stout. Ivar Geif B. Andy M. Smooth and creamy stout. All that vanilla comes through on the nose and palate, along with chocolate and an almost licorice-like hit of bourbon. Lots of roasted, toasted grains give this still-milky stout a dryer flavor profile than some of the sweeter beers on this list.

If you want all the chocolate, toffee, and coffee goodness of the style with a little less body and a little less alcohol, this 4. Aromas of milk chocolate and medium-roast coffee turn to mildly bitter, spice-and-cream-tinged goodness on the palate. Rich, smooth, and creamy, this beer from North Carolina-based Duck-Rabbit checks all the boxes when it comes to satisfying milk stouts, and does so with superb balance and drinkability.