You gotta hand it to the Irish. They not only produce some of the world’s greatest literature, but some of the world’s greatest beer as well. This St. Patrick’s day, though, you might want to put down that pint of Guinness and give a local brew a try. We suggest the Irish-Style Extra Stout from Schlafly.
Schlafly describes the Irish-Style as “an amped-up version of a traditional dry stout,” but we also like it for the slight chocolate undertones. It’s fine to drink on its own, of course, but if you’re a creative cook, you can capitalize on these flavors in some unusual ways. It might sound crazy, but you can use the stout in chocolate cake. The beer provides complexity while reducing the cloying sweetness of the cake. Any sort of dairy can counteract the bitterness, so try floating some high-quality vanilla ice cream in a mug for an adult float. And if you’re really looking for something new, try incorporating the beer into the base of your favorite ice cream recipe. On the savory side of the kitchen, it’s easy to use this beer in beef stew or braised short ribs.
While there’s no shortage of applications for the beer, there is a shortage of time. You only have through the end of March to find this beer on local shelves. We bought ours at the Dierbergs in Brentwood.
This article appears in March 2011.