This morning, before I left the house I looked at the bottles of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and Stout that I had recently purchased, and decided to stick them in the fridge. The plan was to walk along the Grand Union Canal up to Uxbridge, but this wasn't the case. As it is, I now find myself back, and with the two beers mixed, about a third of each, in a pint glass.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale was essentially my introduction to the world of American beer outside of the likes of Budweiser, MIller and Coors. The flavour still provokes memories in me of that time I discovered the beer, and I still get excited when I see it on tap in a pub.
The stout is a beer I've had before, but I can never remember what it's like. Drinking it now, I find myself thinking that there seems to be a distinctive taste to American stouts, that is very different to English and Irish stouts. For me, this is a good thing. I quite like it. It's rather rich, and increases in flavour as it warms up.
In terms of the mixture, the stout is the dominant beer, though the richness has been replaced by a subtle burnt malt flavour. The pineapple notes of the pale ale aren't noticable at all, which in a way, makes this Black and Tan slightly disappointing.
After doing seven of these experiments, I'm starting to develop an idea of what I want from a Black and Tan. I want something that changes as I drink it. A mixture that begins with a wave of hops, then gives way to an aftertaste of burnt malts and chocolatey flavours, or the other way round. This isn't an example of that.
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