Reviewing the Hop Chocolate from the Great Dane Pub and Brewing Company from notes taken on November 18, 2011. Sorry, no picture was taken while sampling this brew.
Score: 76
20 oz tap pour served in an imperial pint glass.
Appearance: Average looking porter. Dark black body with a thin creamy head when it was handed to me. Slightly below average lacing. Could not detect any transparencies, but the bar was pretty dim. 3/5
Smell: A tempting, creamy milk chocolate candy bar aroma. The Great Dane was quite crowded when I had this beer (it was a Friday night), so the environment precluded detecting further nuance. At the same time, however, I tried sticking my nose real deep in the glass halfway through the pint. Alas, I was not able to detect much else. 3.5/5
Taste: At first, I got creamy milk chocolate upfront. Interesting hoppy bite on the mid-palate, but it does not linger or accentuate itself very strongly. As the beer layered, the chocolate flavors leaned more towards bittersweet chocolate. No real finish to the beer -- at least nothing that lingered. 3/5
Mouthfeel: Medium body and medium carbonation. A little watery and overcarbonated for a porter. 2.5/5
Overall: Not to pick on the Great Dane twice in one day -- their food is absolutely superb, and some of their beers, particularly their Imperial IPA and Old Glory American Pale Ale, are excellent microbrew offerings. Alas, this one really didn't do it for me.
Recommendation: The Great Dane has much better beers for you to try than this offering, though I suppose it is not a bad brew to buy in a pitcher for your table on a night out! It was superior to Guinness, but that is not saying too much. The best I can say is that this was a very average beer, and a slightly-below average porter.
Pairings: Uhh...whatever you pair Guinness with. So I guess you should use this to make a fancier Irish Car Bomb.
Cost: $3.50 for a 12 oz pour or $5.00 for a 20 oz pint.
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