Boatswain Chocolate Stout - Minhas Craft Brewery

whatthehull

California

3.7/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Tulip

A - Nice deep brown almost black, one finger very tan head and some nice lacing

S - Lots of roasted malts, brown sugar, milk and dark chocolate, earth and wood, nice mellow coffee, some earthy hops and more sugar

T - Tons of earth, crisp and refreshing, nice malts sweet and toasted, mellow chocolate more on the milk than the dark, soil, minerals, brown sugar, cinnamon, wood and a slight floral hop note

M - Medium minus body, low complexity, low acidity, medium balance and medium finish

D - Very drinkable, if you like guiness stout and are looking for something "craft" give this one a whirl. Refreshing, tasty and surprisingly light

Final thought - $2 and very drinkable? Yes please! Add a teaspoon or 2 of bourbon and a pinch of sugar and watch out!!!

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2012 06:59:34 | More by whatthehull

TwelveOunces

Kentucky

3.68/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz bomber poured into a tulip

A- Pours surprisingly black. A small off brown colored head with little retention.

S- Big chocolate, roasted malt and coffee. A bit of caramel and on the sweet side. A roasted coffee forward flavor. A nice smelling brew.

T- A bitter sweetness up front. A roasted malt takes over and a nice addition of coffee as well. The cocoa isnt very sharp in this beer but does provide a solid base to the beer and adds a lot to the brew overall. Its fairly bitter/sweet and is fairly well balanced.

M- A bit light on feel. A sweeter beer. I think there may be lactose sugar.

O- Don't expect a lot from this beer but I got a bottle for $2.50 which is unbeatable.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2013 23:00:04 | More by TwelveOunces

notchucknorris

California

3.65/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Black with a nice light brown foamy head. The head recedes a little too quickly though and completely disappears.

S: Tootsie roll, subtle yeast notes, marzipan, chocolate and a bit of spiciness.

T: Roasted malt, some powdery cocoa powder and a hint of earthy hops on the finish. For me, the taste was a little too one-dimensional and it got old before the bottle was through. Still, at $1.99, this is an absolute steal. Very worth the price.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2011 09:30:03 | More by notchucknorris

fezmeister

California

3.65/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A no-frills, uncomplicated, yet very pleasant chocolate stout that is what it says. Deep, dark brown in color, creamy tan head, with a rich, malty scent. The flavor is not complex or original, but the roasty malts and strong chocolates are great, balanced by just enough hops, give a rich but smooth and dry finish. The mouthfeel is somewhat creamy, but very drinkable and not heavy. Overall tasty, very easy to drink, and well worth $2 for 22oz.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2012 04:26:21 | More by fezmeister

BeerForMuscle

New Jersey

3.65/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Black bodied stout, no detectable light passing through. A light brown head foaming up when poured, but quickly fading to lace and a few mini islands of bubbles.

S - Nose of mineral water, sweet and metallic. Faint notes of roasted grain and sourdough.

T - A light flavor profile, with some sweet and mild chocolate, hints of roasty malts. Light sweet mineral water, some dry grain.

M - Very light bodied for a stout, its clean and crisp with a mildly dry end. Very drinkable.

O - A drinkable stout, with this light feel and subtle flavors.

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2012 03:09:03 | More by BeerForMuscle

LXIXME

New Mexico

3.63/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A big light brown head takes its time falling into a nice lacing above a clear really dark brown to black colored stout.

Dark roasted malts with some chocolate and coffee, and it seems to almost have the added aroma fresh mashed barley malt.

Coffee and light chocolate within a dark roasted malt grains taste.

A dryish aftertaste without much of the darker roasted grains hanging around on this medium to full bodied beer.

An alright stout, the aroma seems to be better than the taste, but still very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2012 22:51:59 | More by LXIXME

HalfFull

California

3.58/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured into a large wine glass, showing a solid black with a half an inch of mocha foam. Offers decent retention, settling out to a light surface film and leaves good lace.

Aroma offers dominant notes of carob and cocoa with some faint spice as well. Some earthy hop notes pop out a bit with some warming. Taste follow and adds a bit of dark cherry and chocolate. Nice and smooth in the delivery though a touch thin in feel at first, firming up with some cocoa and spice on the finish. But then at 5.4% I guess it does just fine. And a solid value for sure though not particularly 'chocolately' foor a self proclaimed chocolate stout.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2011 02:45:41 | More by HalfFull

JamesS

Indiana

3.58/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bomber for 2 bucks at Trader Joe's in Indy. Poured a very nice deep dark chocolate brown, with some very nice head and decent initial lacing. Decent roasty aroma with a nice chocolate hit and earthy hoppiness underneath. Nice chocolate flavors, seemingly from powdered cocoa, with some light roastiness underneath and a bit of stout astringency. Goes down well, but the flavors don't merge as well as they could.

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2012 16:30:06 | More by JamesS

hreb

Washington

3.56/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

Cold 22 poured in pint glass. Beer is thick, almost syrupy, and opaque brown, with a fat head of a somewhat paler brown. Nice to look at, though the aroma is only faintly of chocolate and somewhat off-puttingly bitter.

Flavor is chocolate stout right up the middle. Not too sweet, but a distinct chocolate note comes through the body of the stout, though it doesn't dominate. The label claims 66 IBUs, but given how neutral this beer is I suspect there's a lot more sugar in here than I'm tasting. It's really quite balanced. The mouthfeel is a little bit lighter than I'd want in a chocolate stout. And while there's nothing really standing about this beer, the value is fantastic.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2013 04:06:27 | More by hreb

barczar

Kentucky

3.5/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours an opaque deep brown with ruby highlights and a fleeitng half inch burnt caramel head that leaves no lacing.

Roast malt, caramel, brown sugar, and chocolate open the aroma, with underlying dark fruit and coffee adding complexity.

Flavor is fairly sweet, with roasty malt kicking in a slightly bitter finish. Chocolate and dark cherries, and coffee are present, with chocolate definitely dominating. There's just a touch of acrid flavor.

Body is a tad syrupy, with low carbonation and slight alcohol warmth.

Overall, on the sweet and syrupy side, but decent roast character...and chocolate...lots of chocolate. Definitely a dessert beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2013 05:35:19 | More by barczar

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.48/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

It seems that my tour of Trader Joe's Boatswain series concludes on a high note. Although my impressions of the others were not favorable, this rich ale raises my enthusiasm a little.

The stout pours like most do- dark brown and nearly opaque. A slight sedimented haze is likely due to the additions of fine cocoa powder. While building a formidable sandy-tan head, the beer laces well with intricate patterns left on the glass.

The usual suspects of robust coffee, chocolate, and burnt woods are all represented in good balance- at least to the nose. But complementary notes of walnut, grain, caramel, and ash play a part in their subsidiarity roles.

Playing both roles of malty-dry and semi-sweet, the flavors of malt and grain seem to retain a moderate level of caramel sweetness that's accompanied by grainy-sweet flavors and low-lying malt taste in support. A mid palate of chocolate and wood give a rounded taste to the roasted malt and caramel flavor while developing into a coffee-like bitterness late. Still an elevated bittersweet chocolate flavor hangs over the beer as it marches over the palate. Yet, the cocoa doesn't make as much of an impact on the beer as the label insinuates- I would have easily believed that the entire chocolate flavor would have come from the roast of malt alone if the label hadn't said otherwise.

The malty-sweet character exists just as well in texture as it does taste and it seems to linger indefinately on the palate without developing any efforts toward dry-malt finish or lifting from the tongue. The residual sweetness clings to the mouth with a sugary weight and never achieves dry refreshment nor savory lingering. It's caught in no man's land and gives cola-like impressions as a final impression.

While the Chocoalte Stout certainly lives up to its namesake, it does little to celebrate what's best about its malt, hop, or chocolate makeup. It's content to live in so-so land of beers.

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2012 16:51:55 | More by BEERchitect

rfbenavi80

Missouri

3.48/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Bottle picked up at Trader Joe's. Most of the time they got some pretty solid beers for a great price. Let's see how this one turns out. Bottle poured into a snifter.

A- Pours a pitch black color, letting absolutely no light through except on the edges where it is a deep brown. It has about 1/2 a fingers width of deep brown head that receded to a very thin cap on top and a ring at the edge of the glass. Pretty good start.

S- Rich smells of strong dark roasted coffee and dark roasted malts. A hint of booziness which is surprising because the ABV is not really high. Not as chocolaty as I expected, which is a good thing.

T- Again, pretty standard American Stout flavors here. Dark roasted coffee, dark roasted malts, more dark chocolate than the nose suggests. But the chocolate is not the dominate flavor here it complements the stout quite well.

M- On the low side of medium body. It does seem a tad too thin. Moderate amount of carbonation.

O- Not too bad at all. Totally worth the 2 buck for this bomber.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2012 04:50:55 | More by rfbenavi80

ManuelHerrera

California

3.43/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Picked this up at Trader Joe's, which is always a crapshoot:

A - Pours a thick, dark brown with very little light penetration and a dark fluffy chocolate head. Lacing is surprisingly thin.

S- Heavy dark cocoa and malt aroma. A bit of coffee on the nose as well, this beer is textbook chocolate stout.

T&M - Flavor is a bit one-note with little in terms of flavor profile. Boatswain hits the points it needs to hit on the profile, no more no less. Malty maltiness and mild cocoa give way to a bitter aftertaste, but not a bitter hop flavor so much as the bitterness one would experience from coffee. The mouthfeel is incredibly thin and carbonated, not what I expected in the slightest!

O- This might be one of the fastest drinks of chocolate stout I've ever had, as it's as thin as a pale ale and hardly a challenge. Best as a sample for someone who doesn't like dark beers too much, or to satisfy a sweet tooth.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2012 05:04:35 | More by ManuelHerrera

TheSixthRing

California

3.43/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance - Pours a near black deep, rich brown. The head is tan and a good finger width before dissipating into a sticky lacing.

Smell - I'm picking up faint traces of roasted chocolate malt, cocoa and a touch of coffee, and that's about it. Not a whole lot going on here.

Taste - More roasty chocolate cocoa and coffee. The layers are fairly simple, but work well enough.

Mouthfeel - Fairly light body for a stout, but the carbonation is right on target.

Overall - Very similar to the Bison Organic Chocolate Stout in many ways, but I'm digging this a lot more.

Serving type: bottle

02-22-2012 03:27:25 | More by TheSixthRing

KingPuuChuu

Arizona

3.43/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Not bad! Poured from bomber into a pint glass. Upon first sniff, there's a heavy sweet cocoa, probably from the cocoa powder. Sometimes, a floral scent comes through.

Flavor is sweet, malty, and the mouthfeel definitely is varying between mouth coating and effervescent. Body is nice. It's not overpowering in any way. I really want a chocolate chip cookie to go with this.

If I see it out on the shelf, I might pick it up again, but if I see Young's Double Chocolate, or Rogue's Chocolate, I'll go for one of those.

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2012 03:05:12 | More by KingPuuChuu

MoreThanWine

Massachusetts

3.4/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured a 1.5" mocha head with average life. The body is deep dark as coffee. Smell is milder than I expected and with roasted malt but not really any chocolate. Then the taste was the opposite with a good amount of dark chocolate but not really any coffee or roasted malt coming forward. Medium body and medium finish. I still fully enjoyed it, and it was ultracheap at Trader Joe's.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2012 12:55:28 | More by MoreThanWine

secondtooth

Indiana

3.39/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Pours a black with tawny brown highlights. Rich head of foamy suds. Thick tree-line lace.

Nose is cocoa. Simply put, cocoa. Not bad at all.

Taste is definitely overwhelmingly chocolate. I get a silky milk chocolate character more as this brew warms up. Not a complex nor multi-dimensional ale, but decent enough.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2013 22:48:58 | More by secondtooth

Drinkerofales

California

3.38/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours black, with hints of red and brown in the pouring. A thick mocha head that flattens out rather quickly and leaves not much lacing.

Smells of coffee and chocolate, with a touch of booze, which is strange considering it's only 5.4%.

Taste is understated, roasted malts, bitter chocolate, hint of coffee and hops somewhere in there.

Feel is smooth and medium bodied. A touch of hop bite gives it some character, but not much.

Too bad we can't rate economics, as this 2 dollar beer has a great value, if not the best of flavors. On flavor as it is, it's better than the DIPA for the 2 bucks, but not on the ABV. Also, it seems that this beer is meant to be enjoyed cold, as all the flavors and smells aren't as good warm.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2012 11:22:40 | More by Drinkerofales

brewcore

South Carolina

3.36/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bomber into a pint glass.

A: Yields a two finger tan head that dissipates into a thin long lasting sheet of foam. Opaque dark brown in color, no light passes through. Excellent lacing.

S: Faint dark roasted malts, chocolate notes. Alcohol punches through surprisingly strong for a low alcohol stout.

T: The expected flavors from the roasted malts. Coffee and dark chocolate. Nice toastiness comes through. Gets better as the temp rises.

M: Slightly high carbonation for the style but not overpowering. Thin to medium body.

O: Definitely not bad for a three dollar bomber, but I don't think I'll be buying another.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2013 23:17:44 | More by brewcore

brewerburgundy

California

3.35/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

22oz bottle, Sam Adams perfect pint,

Nearly opaque, the color is appropriate and tinged more with red and purple than yellow. The head was small and of a normal medium brown with lackluster stickage.

Uh huh, this smells like a chocolate stout. Outdistancing Young's famous brew, the chocolate is dark, shot through with French roast coffee swimming in sugar. Hershey's syrup with a little more refinement seems close.

Not a particularly great Stout is the base. Not a large roast character, but what's there is slightly acrid and even so this is a sweet beer. The lush coffee and chocolate are still there; they pretty much constitute the whole.

It's thin, any way you cut it, it's thin. Medium high carbonation.

Another one of Trader Joe's deals here. Aroma is better than flavor.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2011 01:00:41 | More by brewerburgundy

augustgarage

California

3.35/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22oz bottle into my Samuel Smith nonic.

Opaque seal brown liquid capped by a thin lion head of foam. A light dusting and steady collar are all that remain after a few moments despite a vigorous pour. Thin lacing, no legs.

Hefty roast barley aromatics suggest dark roast coffee, black malt, and cocoa powder. Grainy nose overall with a hint of pine as well.

Rustic roast malt base with a faint metallic note on the palate entry. Lots of grain and specialty malt comes through next along with a mild peppery bitterness and a growing chocolate sweetness. Not very well integrated though the balance is decent. Chocolate barely registers until the aftertaste where it lingers on the tongue.

Rather light-bodied with adequate carbonation.

Reminds me of a Foreign Export Stout to some degree - a touch sweet and rough overall, but quite drinkable and almost as good a value as "two buck Chuck."

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2012 03:46:51 | More by augustgarage

beerenjoyer1

Illinois

3.33/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A Nice and dark with some foam. There is some lacing also which shows some good involved.

S Not as much aroma of chocolate but some malt, and some hops.

T More malt and hop taste than chocolate. Still a nice coffee flavor quite what I expected in a chocolate stout.

M A nice mouthful for a regular stout but not quite as thick a mouthfeel I expected in a chocolate stout.

O A nice beer but I would to see some more thick taste of chocolate along with the coffee, malts, and hops.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2012 20:29:04 | More by beerenjoyer1

bluejacket74

Ohio

3.31/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

22 ounce bottle. Served in a pint glass, the beer pours very dark brown with about a half inch tan head. Head retention and lacing are both decent enough. The brew smells like roasted/grainy malt, bittersweet and milk chocolate, along with a bit of coffee. Taste is pretty much just like the aroma, but the dominant flavor is roasted/grainy malt, with some cocoa powder/bittersweet chocolate noticeable too. Mouthfeel/body is light/medium, it's a bit slick with moderate carbonation. Not a bad overall beer. Can't complain much when it's $1.99 a bomber (from Trader Joe's of course). Worth a try at that price.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2013 00:33:23 | More by bluejacket74

tito42

Missouri

3.31/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Trader Joe's purchase poured from 650 mL (22 oz.) bottle to an imperial pint.

A: Color of fresh motor oil, nearly opaque. Thick, foamy cocoa-colored head.

S: Roasted malt, cocoa, coffee, slight molasses.

T: Roasted malt, instant coffee, plum, milk chocolate, grassy hops.

M: Medium bodied with a decently bitter hops finish and a tangible drying of the palate.

O: Overall a decent chocolate stout, but not quite what you would expect in the bomber packaging and for the price, even at Trader Joe's. Brewed with "cocoa powder," and the taste beckons a less than stellar ingredient quality. Nevertheless, nothing is below average about this brew.

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2013 02:47:06 | More by tito42

DarthKostrizer

California

3.3/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Look: Black and totally opaqe with a 1/4 inch dark brown head and good retention

Smell: Nice amount of cocoa nibs greets you right away. Some roasted malt is hiding behind the cocoa

Taste: The flavor actually works opposite of the nose with the roasted malt and ash notes being upfront and the beer finishes with some chocolate

Mouthfeel: A bit on the thin side and a tad bit too much carbonation

Overall: This beer is a pretty solid beer nothing spectacular but the simple fact that it is only $1.99 a bomber will keep me purchasing it more often. I can honestly say that this beer might give you the most bang for your buck

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2011 16:32:37 | More by DarthKostrizer