Fancy Pants Sunday: Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout
Let’s say you’re at a dinner party on the edge of Gravelly Lake in Lakewood, Journal tucked under your arm, tamping your pipe with one hand, and sipping on a crisp Reuben’s Brew IPA with the other. You’ve been talking Russian politics with someone you consider your intellectual inferior and you’re wearing your fancy jeans — all in all, the night is going well. Suddenly, the hostess offers you some caramel apple bread pudding flown in from an obscure arrondissement of Paris.
Crickey. What’s a craft beer drinker to do?
Grab a North Coast Brewing Co.’s Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout (9%). Black as night and tasting of dark roasted malts and bitter chocolate, Old Rasputin is a complex, strong beer, both in flavor and alcohol content. As it warms up you’ll start to taste rich espresso, black pepper and burnt caramel.
While it is an intense beer, the smooth texture helps it match — not overpower — caramel apple bread pudding, and the big bitter finish does a great job at cutting the fruity and sweet toffee flavors.
You fancy Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout!
LINK: Fancy Pants Sunday archives
