What About Stout? Porter / ale / stout naming debates

What About Stout? is an article just published by Blast Magazine in Boston, MA. It compares Guinness to other stouts, visits the porter / stout naming debate, and tries to define terms such as ale and lager. There’s a comment board where you can agree or disagree.

Author sounds like a jerk that sticks to the "dark color good, light color bad" rule.

Edit: Sorry, just saw you're the author.

I'm not claiming to be a beer expert here, but I kept reading things that sounded questionable to me. As I got farther in the article, the frequency of questionable things were increasing. First off, I have never had a lager that tasted like an IPA. Does this exist? Because if it does, I want to try it. Also, I've never heard anybody with any actual beer knowledge say that all stouts are porters. Where did that come from? In fact, some of the information in this thread says very much the opposite of what you said. I'm not necessarily saying that I think you're wrong, I'm just saying that I've heard two sides of a debate and only one has put forth any sources at all.

Also, if you're talking about transporting things, you might have them on a pallet, but if you are tasting things, the word you want is palate. Pet peeve of mine. I let it slide most of the time, but if it's published, I can't help myself.

It was an opinion piece where the author set out why he loves stout. If he dislikes lager, I think he is entitled to say so! I tend to agree that even a good lager is pretty bland, and that a poor pale ale could be seen as similar. I'd not put a hoppy ale like Sierra Nevada Pale Ale or an IPA in the same category though! He just needs to try some good examples! Think of it as research, John, and search out some Stone Ruination or Pliny the Elder. They may not be to your taste, but they sure ain't lager!

BTW - you might also want to look into the BJCP Style Guidelines for more info on what makes different styles different. Of course, brewers don't have to brew to style, and so these are really developed for categorizing beers in homebrew competitions.

slowbie said:

Also, I've never heard anybody with any actual beer knowledge say that all stouts are porters. Where did that come from?

Click to expand...

That link above is just giving me a database error, but I wanted to talk about this point. The history of stouts and porters are not surprisingly similar, and the history suggests that the porter was the predecessor of the stout. A stout was a 'stout porter' and to that end it could be said that all stouts are in fact porters.

But that being said, history does not have much bearing on the styles as we know them today and while the lines still do blur fairly often, a porter and a stout are not the same beer.

i hate the stout vs. porter debate. There is no difference in my book these days. Maybe back in the day...but now? No.

I ordered an Oatmeal Stout at a brewpub recently. The server said "the Porter?" And I said, "No, the Oatmeal Stout." And she said, "Right." I got the beer, and there was no detectable oat body to it, much sweeter than most OS I've had. It was an ok beer though, although I didn't want another. When she came back for round two, she said, "you had the porter, right?" I told her I ordered an Oatmeal Stout and she told me "Yeah, it's the same thing. We switch them each month and this month it's the porter." I was bit pissed, but didn't want to make it an issue because of my friends.

It's one thing to wonder about the dividing line between porter and stout, but wholly another to give you an entirely different beer and just assuming that they are "the same thing."

What settles the "argument" for me is that I use the word "stout" as an adjective in my head, not a noun. ex "Boy, this is a stout porter". For me, I dont much care for cladistics when it comes down to the stout-porter thing.

There seems to be a predilection among some brewers to classify, classify, classify, and indeed, there needs to be some classification for beers for communication purposes. When Im speaking to laymen, which the author obviously is, about beer, I always try to keep my mind open and my mouth shut. Because when someone doesnt know sh*t about what they're talking about it is usually evident. When it comes to the nuts and bolts of classification, unless explicitly asked, I usually just try to enjoy my beer.
-Jefe-