Brown Ale, Porters, And Stouts - What's The Good Stuff?

[misterlowercase]

I've always been a casual beer drinker, but lately I'm getting a bit more serious with a wider variety of tastings --- there's just so much good stuff out there now!
Way back when in the pre-internet days, I got stuck on Whitbread Pale Ale and drank tons of it.
I thought all stouts tasted like Guinness so I avoided them, I'm not really a fan of the dry Irish style.

I didn't even know English sweet stouts existed,

but now I'm enthralled with them,

the perfect baccy beer in my book!
Even though I did get to try Mackeson way back when (because of my fascination with Whitbread), I just wasn't ready for stouts I guess.
Now I'm going through and trying to find my faves.
The frustrating thing is how much stuff is regional and hard to get.
I doubt I'd ever got to try Cigar City Maduro Brown Ale if it wasn't for a job I was doing down in Florida and had easy access to it --- the first time I tried it, the date code on bottom indicated it was only one week old and it was absolutely delicious --- I drank 3 sixpacks of it that week!
In fact, as of now, it's my favorite brown ale.
I've even began reading beer reviews and it all seems to tie in nicely with my tobacco obsession...

It's hot outside, so an IPa or hefeweizen would fit, right? Ok, I'm going to break the trend by beating the heat with a brown ale. From a 12 ounce can, on to the beer:
The head initially forms well as it holds itself at an inch thick, then it suddently dissolves and looks like a still brown ale. It's color is closer to leather brown, and without the head, fizzy carbonation bubbles are visible from a birds-eye view. But it smells very pelasing. It smells sweet, toffee, fudge, even fruity. Very nice.
That taste, wow! Hold onto your palate, you're in for a ride! The beer starts off sweet and nutty, then a wave of smoked fruits and a touch of fudge makes this delicious brown ale even better. It's not overdone with the sweet toffee/aspect, helping create a beer that is very drinkable while being tasty.
You may not get your hands on a Huanapu, but you can easily get your hands on a Maduro Brown, and why not? This is well worth drinking.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/17981/112124/

There's even crazy beer cellars and the accompanying crazy prices,

http://mybeercellar.com/?itm=29874
I really really really want to try Three Floyds Moloko,

but haven't been able to find a bottle yet...

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26/25435/
I like how they call those big bottles "bombers".
As of now,

Bell's Special Double Cream Stout is my fave stout.
I'm still trying to find "my" porter,

just tonight I drank some Left Hand Black Jack and it was quite good,

ain't tried Founders yet.
The other day tried some Horny Goat Brownie Porter and was highly impressed...
...what the brewers say:

The malt bill of this brew is comprised of seven different malts for a very complex base. We add brown sugar to the boil which will increase the alcohol content and give the beer a molasses flavor. Cinnamon is then added to the whirlpool to finish. Finally, the beer is aged on Tahitian vanilla beans and Ecuadorian cacao nibs for a true brownie flavor.

The slight cinnamon finish is indeed amazing.
Overall a very tasty porter...

add an Alden + Warrior Plug = a fine session!

:!:

The first one I drank straight outta the can and of course the full spectrum of flavor was thus muted.
I had read about special glasses for whatever you're drinking, and it all made sense to me considering my experience with finding the right pipe for certain baccies,

and just like pipe forums,

there is a debate about the issue...

http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/spiegelau-stout-glass.160514/
...but,

my local had 'em available and I bought one just to find out.
tried it first with this porter and the glass did do a wonderful trick,

in fact, I love the damn glass!

It's a wonderful design.

Just looking for reccos in regard to browns, porters, and stouts...
...what's your favorites?
::

 

[delkhouri]

I really like:

Stout - Left Hand Brewery Milk Stout

Brown Ale - Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale

- Brooklyn Brewery Brown Ale

- Holy City Brewery Chucktown Follicle Brown

- Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan Ale (probably my favorite beer)

 

[misterlowercase]

Yeah,

I really like LH Milk Stout,

my go to lately as it's easily available.
I'm eager for the fall/winter stout season to begin!
I'm going to hoard Bell's Special Double Cream Stout because I only discovered it at the tail end of the season and only got a few sixpacks of the stuff.

Holy City Brewery Chucktown Follicle Brown

Cool!

I'm working in the Carolinas next week and may get lucky enough to find some,

dig the beard label!
thanks for the recco!

::

 

[cossackjack]

Telluride Brewing Co's Face Down Brown Ale is a rich award winning brown, but may be difficult to find outside of Colorado. My non-beer drinking wife even likes it.

 

[haymarket]

An easy one to find, and certainly one of my favorites, is Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

 

[ssjones]

Locally, we have:

Lancaster Brewing - Milk Stout, rich and delicous (nice dessert beer)

Yuenglings Dark Brewed Porter is easily available here and pretty damn good.

 

[mvmadore]

I'll second Left Hand Brewing Black Jack Porter...yummm

My favorite year right now is Troeg's Troeginator...boy it is good.

All time favorite is Troeg's Mad Elf Ale...it is awesome but a seasonal...see you closer to the holidays.
Just tried Arrogant Bastard's newest release of a Bourbon Barrel beer...it is very good but I prefer Troeginator by a whisker.

 

[papipeguy]

Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout is a very fine drink and Young's Double Chocolate Stout is dessert in a can.

 

[Sjmiller CPG]

Okay, perhaps I am not adventurous enough but I prefer the beers from the British Isles and thus will name and endorse the obvious Newcastle Brown Ale.
At the same time, and you may pelt me with pouches of St. Bruno's Flake if you wish, I am going to go a bit off topic and add the names of three beers that fall outside of the scope of the posted search but I recommend them whenever I get into a discussion of beer. Jeer me now but you will thank me later if you heed my advice. They are:
Bellhaven Scottish Ale

Old Speckled Hen

The Tanner's Jack
Thank you and good day.

 

[johnnyreb]

I'm really liking Oatmeal Stouts right now and as papipe has pointed out, Samuel Smith's is tops! Check this website for a good listing to find what might be available near you:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/69/

 

[phred]

Living in Colorado has its advantages, beer-wise. :D
I enjoyed the first explosion of craft brewing that grew out of the homebrewing culture here, and tend to agree that the darker stuff is preferable to lagers and pilsners (although in the summer, they can be refreshing). But it's hard to restrict myself to one particular exemplar, so I tend to look for offerings from particular breweries that do good stuff...
So - for Belgian-inspired brews, I look first to New Belgium. Their 1554 is awesome, but they also do a lot of weird experimental stuff (some of it only available at the brewery up in Ft. Collins, others marketed under the "Lips of Faith" designation) - sour beers, sessions, you name it. Standbys on the dark side include their Trippel and Abbey ales.
Left Hand is also hard to go wrong with. Their Milk Stout is a staple, especially if the pub has a nitro tap.
Ska Brewing over in Durango does a lot of good stuff - Steel Toe Stout, Nefarious Ten Pin Imperial Porter, Buster Nut Brown Ale would be the ones you're looking for.
Odell Brewing does more of the lighter side, and does it well - I'm fond of their 90 Shilling Ale - but they also have Cutthroat Porter.
Breckenridge Brewery has a Vanilla Porter that's quite nice, and an Oatmeal Stout that I like as well.

 

[captainprophesy]

Im a HUGE stout fan... pretty much all I drink is stouts and whiskey :D
I have a local brewery called ROK House, that the wife and I frequent (a bit too much I think) where I can relax with a nice Imperial Stout and a pipe.
Rok House Brewery - Sköl Krusher Russian Imperial Stout

Rok House Brewery - Midnight Sun Imperial Black Ale

Bootlegger's Brewery - Black Phoenix Chipotle Coffee Stout

Great Divide Brewery - Yeti Imperial Stout

Belching Beaver Brewery - Milk Stout

Belching Beaver Brewery - Ol’ Dirty Russian Imperial Stout
These are just a few of the current favorites... but I always enjoy new beers all the time.

 

[misterlowercase]

Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

I've avoided Impy stouts due to the high alc,

just not my thing,

but I did try this recently as it is reputed to be one of the best examples,

first glass was too cold, bitter taste,

2nd glass warmer with the addition of 5 whoppers helped tremendously,

I was loving it by the 4th glass!

Lancaster Brewing - Milk Stout, rich and delicous (nice dessert beer)

That sounds right up my alley!

Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout

Confirmed good stuff in my book,

it's great.

Looking for an oyster stout because I wanna see how they taste.
Haven't tried the Young's Double Chocolate Stout, gotta put it on the list!

Newcastle Brown Ale

Undoubtedly.

One of my faves.

Bellhaven Scottish Ale

I've had a couple of Scottish ales and loved the smokiness.

Old Speckled Hen

Very good stuff indeed.

Belching Beaver Brewery - Milk Stout

Seen that online and it looks like a winner!

Ska Brewing over in Durango does a lot of good stuff - Steel Toe Stout, Nefarious Ten Pin Imperial Porter, Buster Nut Brown Ale would be the ones you're looking for.

I've seen their stuff and read about it,

looks good and sounds good...
...the perfect match for a rocksteady session!

8)
:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLNnFYrp8KQ

 

[aldecaker]

Sammy Smith's Oatmeal Stout and Sammy Smith's Nut Brown Ale. Also, as you mentioned, hard to go wrong with Newcastle. BTW, if you don't like Guinness, give it another go with a different twist. After the pint has settled, slow-pour in a double shot of Jameson's. It will mix itself; I call it the "Lava Lamp" because it sort of looks like one as it mixes.

 

[misterlowercase]

Sammy Smith's Taddy Porter is excellent as well.

BTW, if you don't like Guinness, give it another go with a different twist. After the pint has settled, slow-pour in a double shot of Jameson's. It will mix itself; I call it the "Lava Lamp" because it sort of looks like one as it mixes.

Uh oh,

I might get in trouble with that one!

Sound good and I think I may try it.

Thanks.

:!:

 

[brewshooter]

Bellhaven Scottish Ale

On nitrogen, probably in the running for my favorite beer.

 

[gphenry]

My brother and a good friend of ours are huge micro brew beer samplers. Ordering and traveling to try different beers from everywhere. I enjoy listening to their adventures.
I like Yuengling Lager.
I think the good stuff is what you like.

 

[Sjmiller CPG]

You might consider Guinness Extra Stout. It is different from regular Guinness but very tasty.

 

[weezell]

Yuenglings Dark Brewed Porter is easily available here and pretty damn good.

+100 (Cheap and Delightful! Also great to cook with)...

 

[ssjones]

We have a new pub in town, and they offered "Not Your Fathers Rootbeer".

http://smalltownbrewery.com/our-beers/year-round/
It tastes exactly like a good microbrewery rootbeer, but it is 5.9% alcohol. It goes down like root beer and I couldn't detect that it had alcohol at all. In fact I didn't believe it until I read the bottle. It was too sweet to drink more than one, but an interesting take on a micro-brew.