Stout is a dark
beer made using roasted
malts. Stout was first brewed by Guiness of Ireland and was originally called
Stout-Porter, as its recipe was a variation of that for
porter beer. It encompasses a large enough class of beers and subclasses of beers, that Stout and Porter are considered two distinct styles.
There are several kinds of stout:
- Irish stout or dry stout is the original product
- Imperial stout was originally brewed in England for import to the court of the Czar of Russia. It has a very high alcohol content--nine or ten percent is not uncommon--intended to preserve it during long trips and to provide a more bracing drink against cold climates.
- Cream Stout used to have dairy product added to it; it rarely does nowadaya, and the name often denotes very smooth, thick-textured stouts with a distinctive flavour
- Oatmeal stout, similarly, had oats added to it.
Examples of stouts are Guinness, Murphy's[?], Beamish and Carbine Stout[?]. Shakespeare Stout, brewed by Rogue Breweries in the Pacific Northwest, has in recent years become one of the most celebrates stouts on the world market.