Thursday was the shortest day of the year, which means we’re slowly starting to gain daylight as we head into 2024.
But that doesn’t mean it’s not still dark and dreary out, and that will continue to be the case for the next several weeks.
When faced with this type of weather, people often gravitate toward darker, stronger beers that give you that warm and fuzzy feeling.
I mean, most people aren’t going to be pounding back porters or stouts in the summer, right?
That’s why it’s a great time of year for Field House Brewing to drop a pair of seasonal beers that are absolutely perfect for the final few days of 2023 and the winter days ahead in early 2024.
First of all, if you haven’t ever been to or heard of Field House, it’s a must visit for the next time you're in the Fraser Valley with two locations in Abbotsford and Chilliwack and world-class beer.
Now, to the matter at hand, which is the beer.
I’ll start with the Tropical Coconut Coffee Stout, which was a collaboration between Field House and their friends at Smoking Gun Coffee Roasters in Chilliwack.
It features a custom blend of 75% Ethiopian beans, with big notes of blueberry and milk chocolate, and 25% Nicaraguan beans to give it tropical fruit and coconut notes.
The coffee is cold brewed and added to the beer-making process alongside organic coconut chips and cacao nibs, giving the stout a great mix of unique flavours.
A day after dropping that exciting creation last week, Field House doubled down with another great winter release in the Mexican Chocolate Salted Porter.
The brewery says it’s inspired by the often-spiced chocolate of Mexico and the beer starts with a smooth dark base of pale, roasted and caramelized malts.
“Diverging from tradition, we then added Vancouver Island sea salt, roasted cacao nibs, whole cinnamon sticks soaked in bourbon vanilla and our own farm grown house roasted chili peppers,” the beer makers explain.
The blend of ingredients transforms the simple porter into a slightly-spicy, lightly-sweet and chocolate-forward brew that is a delicious winter warmer.
The Mexican Chocolate Salted Porter is 6% ABV, while the Tropical Coconut Coffee Stout is a little stronger at 7%.
If you’re reading this outside of the Lower Mainland or Fraser Valley, it may be tough to find these beers to buy, but it’s always worth looking at your local private store.
And if you're unsuccessful in that sense, you could always try and get friends or family who live in that area to pick some up and put it in the mail for you! (Or a beer-focused road trip? I won't judge...)
Alternatively, there’s a similar creation from Field House that is currently for sale at BC Liquor Stores, and that is the Salted Black Porter.
Brewed with salted black licorice candies, also known as Dutch droppies, this porter is rich and dark, but surprisingly light in body.
It has a balanced malt profile that leads with flavours of coffee and licorice, which leads to caramel and chocolate notes for a touch of residual sweetness.
Josh Duncan is the NowMedia news director and a craft beer lover. Reach him at [email protected]. His beer column appears every Saturday afternoon in this space.
