Rogue Sriracha Hot Stout Beer

Brewed By: Rogue Ales in Newport, Oregon  

Purchased: 750ml (1 pint, 9.4oz) bottle bought at Jewel-Oscoin Chicago, IL; 2015

Style/ABV: Spice/Herb/Vegetable American Stout, 5.7%

Reported IBUs: ?

In b4 this is the best beer I've had from Rogue in a long time. About Rogue:

Rogue has been around forever, and if their beer was more widely available, and not so damn expensive, I'd probably drink more of their stuff. The brewery was founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon by Jack Joyce, Bob Woodell, Rob Strasser, and home brewer Jeff Schultz. Due to increasing space and distribution limitations, Jack Joyce went searching in Newport for a location for the new Rogue pub. It was at this time that he met Mohave Niem, founder of Mo's Clam Chowder. She offered Jack space to brew in her building, and in 1989 the Bay Front Brew Pub was built. Rogue's headquarters currently reside in Newport to this day. In May 1989, current head brewmaster, John Maier, joined Rogue after a brief sting brewing with Alask Brewing. John was a former Senior Technician with Hughes Aircraft Co, and a graduate of the Seibel Institute. To learn more about Rogue, check out their website HERE.

The Sriracha Hot Stout is brewed with Huy Fong original hot chili sauce and sun ripened Rogue Farms ingredients. As you can guess, this pours into a dark, opaque body, kicking up a couple of fingers of tan head. There is good head retention, good lacing, and the beer looks the part of any solid American Stout/Porter.

Rogue Sriracha Hot Stout Beer

The aroma on this is actually really good. You get tons of umami, Sriracha, spicy heat, chili, chocolate, cocoa, toast, that creamer/lactose note, and a fair amount of milk chocolate ala a Hershey's bar. And then there's just that hint of coffee from the darker malts. The aroma really starts to pop as things warm up as well.

I cannot fault this beer, it basically sets out what it intends to accomplish, and it does a really good job. This beer nails the umami flavor up front, and delivers a solid Sriracha punch with lots of tomato paste, and chili heat that punches the lower part of your throat. This is not a 2-D beer, and delivers a wave of chocolate, coffee, dark malts, and milk chocolate towards the back. The chocolate plays well with the chili heat that is kicking around in the back of the throat, and you get some cinnamon and chocolate-chili vibes. Overall, it's not bad. 

This is medium-bodied, has good depth, good complexity, and a good Porter/Stout base. The base to this is actually quite rich, especially at 5.7%. I'm getting a lot of that chocolate goodness, and the mouthfeel has substantial chew. Rogue's beers are hit and miss in this category, but they nailed the body on this one. The complexity unfolds through the umami-forward front, and then the chocolate-heavy middle, and the chili-chocolate back. It's like a toned down version of the many higher ABV chili Stouts out there. 

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Above-Average here. This is a really good Porter/Stout masquerading as a really solid chili beer. The Sriracha comes through with some nice chili spice and umami character, and the base beer is big and bold. I would definitely consider pairing this beer with food. And as it stands, 750ml is a lot of this beer...maybe share this one with a friend. 

Random Thought: Overall, Rogue makes some solid beers...maybe even more hits than misses. It's too bad they price themselves out of the market. 

Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Pretzel, Raspberry, and Chocolate Ale

Brewed By: Rogue Ales in Newport, Oregon  

Purchased: 750ml (1 pint, 9.4oz) bottle bought at Capone's Liquor & Food in Chicago, IL; 2014 (2013 bottle?)

Style/ABV: American Brown Ale, 5.4%

Reported IBUs: 31

Tonight's beer is another attempt at finding enjoyment from Rogue's Voodoo Doughnut beers. Their Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale just kind of sucks and was underwhelming, but I am optimistic that tonight's beer will be a little better. About Rogue:

Rogue has been around forever, and if their beer was more widely available, and not so damn expensive, I'd probably drink more of their stuff. The brewery was founded in 1988 in Ashland, Oregon by Jack Joyce, Bob Woodell, Rob Strasser, and home brewer Jeff Schultz. Due to increasing space and distribution limitations, Jack Joyce went searching in Newport for a location for the new Rogue pub. It was at this time that he met Mohave Niem, founder of Mo's Clam Chowder. She offered Jack space to brew in her building, and in 1989 the Bay Front Brew Pub was built. Rogue's headquarters currently reside in Newport to this day. In May 1989, current head brewmaster, John Maier, joined Rogue after a brief sting brewing with Alask Brewing. John was a former Senior Technician with Hughes Aircraft Co, and a graduate of the Seibel Institute. To learn more about Rogue, check out their website HERE.

The Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale comes in a captivating pink bottle, like all the Voodoo Doughnut beers. The back of the bottle says this beer is "dedicated to Tres & Cat Daddy, The Rogues of Voodoo Doughnuts." This beer is brewed with 14 ingredients: 2-Row, Munich, C120, Chocolate, Black, Kiln Coffee & Rogue Farms Dare and Risk Malts; Rogue Farms Rebel Hops; Pretzels, Raspberry Extract, Chocolate, Pacman Yeast & Free Range Coastal Water. It's a tall order calling your beer a "Pretzel, Raspberry & Chocolate Ale." Those are familiar flavors, and you practically set yourself up for disaster. Also, where is the Oxford comma. 

 Rogue VD Pretzel, Raspberry, and Chocolate Ale

The beer pours into a dark brown, cola-esque body, with brown and red tones. The beer kicks up two fingers of thick, bready, brown head, and head retention is nice with some good lacing. The beer looks good.

I have yet to unravel the mystery of the Voodoo Doughnut series of beers, which all have a dusty cocoa/chocolate aroma, with some maple syrup in the mix. You definitely get that on the aroma. I'm also getting some raspberry-chocolate and cherry chocolate on the aroma, with some malty biscuit and bready notes. The Munich malts really stand out, and I could see where you could interpret pretzel on this beer's aroma, but I probably wouldn't place it in a blind aroma/tasting. Lots of chocolate-raspberry and big fruity presence.

Annnnnddd...the taste runs into the same problems that the Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale ran into. This beer is front loaded with flavor, and kind of fizzes out. Although, this is a lot better than the Bacon Maple Ale. I'm getting tons of caramel, bready, sugary Munich malts in this, with big toast and biscuit. There's tons of dusty cocoa and chocolate sweetness, with hints of dusty raspberry, earthy/ash/espresso/dirt, and roast. This beer kind of reminds me of a Dunkler Bock with some raspberry thrown into the mix. The yeast is super clean, maybe to a fault, and the mid and back palate aren't particularly flavorful, with lingering toast, bread, and malt sweetness. Lots of chalky and dusty chocolate.

I feel like the biggest detractor to this beer is in the name. This beer implies so many good things: Pretzel, Raspberry, Chocolate. And it comes in a bright pink bottle that screams: "Bold." This beer is really anything but, dialing up moderate flavors with a disappointing palate depth and a serious lack of complexity for something that has had 14 ingredients thrown at it. The 5.4% ABV is a welcomed change of pace, and the beer is unique...I just want more for a beer like this. The beer has a medium-bodied mouthfeel with good carbonation: the first part of the sip is the best, with tons of bready biscuit, pretzels, toast, dusty cocoa, chocolate, Munich malt complexity, and an injection of raspberry up front; mid-palate starts with lingering raspberry, and dials up the bread, toffee, toast, and malt aspects, dusty cocoa; the back trails off those same flavors, with a dash of watery nothing, and then fade to black. Just okay.

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Average on this. This beer promises so much, and basically tastes like a pimped out Dunkler Bock or Marzen or something. It would make a great Fall seasonal, but I think Rogue was going for something a bit more bold here. Bold this is not, but it's not a total mess like the Bacon Maple Ale. These bottles are expensive though, retailing at around $12-15 per bottle. Maybe not worth it. Food pairings: evidently doughnuts, maybe I'll try that. In fact, that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to pick up a doughnut to pair with the remainder of this beer tonight #YOBVDO (you only buy voodoo doughnuts once).

Random Thought: The Binny's off Clybourn is a total clusterfuck. What a nightmare. Too many people, too popular. Don't got there on weekends or during peak hours. Support your mom & pop shops.