Brewery: Southside Brewing
Country: Sweden
Size: 33cl
ABV: 6.2%
Price: 31kr
Systembolaget: 32921
Scrolling through the Systembolaget pages one day I came across this and I have to say I fell in love with the name of this beer straight away. As a bit of a doughtnut fiend, I knew I had to try it. I mean how could anyone resist a beer that tastes like glazed doughtnuts? I mean it’s practically Homer Simpsons wet dream in a can. I have tried quite a few brews from Southside Brewing up in Skellefteå and was keen to see if they could deliver on what the name promised. It was also intriguing because it is a blond stout and I have never tried one of those before. I’m glad to say the name was rather apt.
As the name suggests it was amber gold in colour rather than the tradition deep brown to black mainly associated with stouts. It looked like more like an IPA or golden ale. They still manage to get the stout taste characteristics without the colour by substituting the dark and chocolate malts for coldbrew coffee. It was crisp looking and clear with good head retention. It had very nice body on it which was evident with a swirl of the glass. The smell was a sugary mixture of sweet caramel, dark chocolate, sticky toffee pudding and sweet licorice. It was like a dessert buffet that had been blended and poured into a can. The carbonation was noticeable and higher than expected. Upon sipping, the first thought that hit my mind was “this is so strange” as it truly tasted like a liquid doughnut. It had a pastry sweetbread taste with creamy caramel frosting notes. It coated the mouth and tongue like sweet cream. The aftertaste was sweet caramel and held well. It gave a thick chocolate chip cookie type coating to the tongue. It was almost too sugary sweet though and made me want to brush my teeth after. As the taste subsided the sweetness continued for a fairly long time.
I thought this beer did exactly what it said on the tin. It wasn’t Homer drool inducing but I’m still happy with it. It isn’t going to win any awards for “most attractive can design” but it does its job. I think this will be too sweet for some people but it is expected from a beer called “glazed doughnut”. I don’t think I could drink more than one but it would be a nice dessert beer to finish off a meal with. It was fun to finally try a blond stout as they aren’t that common. I could buy this again. It has given me a craving for a real doughnut though so off to the shop I go. Mmmmm doughnuts…. *drools*