Where did 'stout beer' come from?
In order to understand stout, we have to look back to the humble London Porter, originating in (you guessed it) London in the early 1700's. Back then, in the context of heavy taxation, these beers were intentionally cheap to make, often aged for extended time to remove any unpleasant smokey tang from the budget malts used, and heavily hopped to counteract the lower alcohol.
Over time, their style would evolve to be bigger and bolder in its profile, and with the phrase 'stout porter' and ‘brown stout’ beginning to describe what were 'stronger' beers, either in body, alcohol content, or often both. Stout in English back then is said to have meant ”proud” - with the definition widening to strength.
In the mid 1980s, a survey conducted by beer writer Michael Jackson (not that one) revealed that a mere 29 breweries were routinely producing Stout style beers. We're incredibly lucky to be in a time where this flavourful beer can be found so readily available, and in such variety - the craft beer revolution.
Nowadays, it’s not so clear where the boundaries are between stout and porter, though we find it useful to think of stouts being on the thicker, richer side and porters on the roastier and more hop-forward side. Of course, either style now could clock in anywhere between 3% and 15% abv.
How are stouts made?
The extent to which Stouts and Porters get their ink-black colour is down to the roasted grains used. It's roasted barley, or occasionally wheat and other grains, that contribute to the colour of the beer. In addition, the additional roasting opens up different flavours and aromas, ranging from lightly toasted bread, through to coffee and chocolate, and at the extreme end roasty burnt bitterness. It's useful to think of roasting grains how you might think about roasted coffee, with longer roasting time drawing more intensity.
Brewers are looking for these malts to provide richness, support the mouthfeel of the beer and work with the structure of the alcohol. Otherwise, the fermentation process works in the same way as pale beers.
Styles of Stout
The stout is a highly flexible style when it comes to different approaches; from milk stouts, creamy and sweet from the addition of lactose, to oatmeal stouts with a high proportion of oats for a smooth pour, and even imperial stouts which dare to drive the alcohol up to (and in some cases over) 11, which can contribute to even better depth of flavour.
Stouts can be ideal to support with additional 'adjunct' ingredients like coffee, chocolate, wood, vanilla, spices, oysters… the list goes on. These beers can be incredibly varied in flavour profile, so perhaps have an unfair reputation of being bland, or difficult to pinpoint specific notes, in the mainstream examples.
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Due to both their flavour profiles and their intensity of that flavour, stouts often lend themselves to barrel ageing. We’ve been doing this since 2013, the interplay between the beer, the wood, and the spirit character present in these barrels melds together in unpredictable and often absolutely delicious ways. Currently you can find 'All Night Long' and 'Barrel Aged Caribbean Chocolate Cake' online to sample.
The benefits of Nitro dosing
Nitro-serving has been around in beer since the 1950's. It was originally designed to improve service speed and reduce wastage from the old 'high cask and low cask' method.
Used most famously by Guinness to give a cascade in the glass and a smoothness when drinking, the 'Nitro' process replaces some of the CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) with N2 (Nitrogen). Nitrogen is largely insoluble in liquids, so the beer takes on a really creamy character that’s very smooth to drink. In addition, the smaller size of the bubbles helps to create a thicker, tighter foam in the head of your glass. Overall, you get a softer, silkier result compared to the effervescent, bright and bubbly CO2 equivalent.
Due to the success of trial versions, Broken Dream, our Supreme Champion Beer of Britain award winning Breakfast Stout, has been dosed with nitrogen as standard since 2023. Surprising to some, but a Siren staple for good reason, this addition of Nitrogen before canning brings an enticingly smooth and cask-like drinking experience to the beer. While this addition can work in many styles, we know that Stout is where it’s at.
To get the full Nitro experience, you will need to break from the tradition of a carefully poured beer in favour of turning the can upside down and letting the whole thing empty. After the beer has poured in a beautiful cascade fashion, you’ll find it super smooth to drink - reminiscent of a cask pour - with big bold flavours coming through. We’ve updated our Making Plans For Nitro mixed case to include our latest Nitro stout 'Mover & Shaker', and it even comes with the perfect vessel for pouring - a Nitro style pint glass.
How best to enjoy a Stout
We think that the best way for you to enjoy a stout is your way. Whether that be alone in a moment of peaceful reflection, or with company, celebrating a landmark event. We do think there is something magical about sipping a good stout in the cooler months beside a roaring fire, and if that’s not something you’ve tried, onto your bucket list it goes. That said, is there anything better than an imperial stout, midway through a blistering-hot London Craft Beer Festival session in the middle of summer?
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When looking at glassware for your dark beer, a tulip style is the popular choice for many - but again, it may all boil down to your favourite souvenir glass from a previous beer festival. Hint hint. For Nitro stouts, there’s no better vessel than our own Nitro pint glass.
What’s the best serving temperature for stout? These beers do need to be allowed to warm up to get the full expression of flavour, but that’s optional of course. We recommend leaving them out of the fridge for a while and tasting as you go.
What Stout means to us
The water in the South East where our brewery is located is infamously hard, which lends itself to brewing stouts. Although we now have great control over our water profiles, we don’t need to make many adjustments to brew our dark beers.
While we're a brewery that cover a multitude of beer styles throughout each year, many know us to be big in the stout game - and we won't deny that, as these styles are perhaps what we love most. From big early collaborations like Even More Jesus VIII, to more recent examples like Origin Story or Mavka, a big chunk of our most special beery memories live in stouts and porters.
Dark & Perilous Nights remains our highest ever rated beer on Untappd (recently awarded the 2024 community gold award), and there are a fair few other dark beers in the top 10 as well. We almost always make room for a big stout in our anniversary celebrations, with this year seeing the return of Even More Jesus, and Caribbean Chocolate Cake remains the biggest project for us each year.
We're always pushing the limits on what we can achieve with our stouts, and the excitement around each dark beer release never diminishes - we'd love for you to join us on our journey...
Best Stouts to try right now!
Currently, we have a wide range of stouts available online, each with their own unique take on the style. Our Origin Story imperial stout is back and better than ever with two additions to the family; Nitro Origin Story and Origin S’morey, a vanilla & hazelnut take on the beer.
Mover & Shaker is our most recent addition online, and at 4.6% is a great example of a sessionable stout, with a smooth pour thanks to the dose of Nitro.
Another more than worthy mention is Mavka, an imperial stout originally brewed in collaboration with Varvar Brewery in Kyiv, Ukraine. Now back for a third time, this is a stout for a cause with 50p from each can sold going directly to supporting humanitarian aid trips from Banbury to Ukraine.
