Scripps Pier Oyster Stout

Scripps Pier Oyster Stout comes from San Diego, California's South Park Brewing Co., a little outfit that I checked out with my father during a recent trip to Southern California. Nice place, too. Good vibe in a cool neighbourhood.

The beer was black and pretty, topped with a very thin off-white head. According to the South Park website, the beer had a modest 5.2% alcohol and it's brewed using "filtered salt water available to the public at Scripp's Pier". Very malty, sweet and slightly chocolatey through the nose. The flavour walked a similar line, with roasted malt playing lead, a bit of sweets, and a touch of tobacco, before it turned a bit bitter at the finish.

Pretty nice little stout--light-bodied but flavourful.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Queen City Craft--Marooned on Hog Island

Another offering from 21st Amendment Brewery, Marooned on Hog Island is billed as a "stout brewed with Hog Island sweetwater oyster shells". At 7.9%, this stout has some chops. It comes in 12oz. cans and pours with a dark, ruby hue, under a fluffy cream head. Unlike Hell or Highwatermelon, reviewed earlier, this strong ale comes, not from San Francisco, California, but from 21st Amendment's San Leandro, CA location.

The aroma is quite rich and warm, with cocoa and molasses elements. The flavour, which is built on a malty foundation, contains some dusky, sweet chocolate notes. My pal MM recommended that I enjoy this brew slowly, because a faint saltiness comes though as the beer warms, and she wasn't messing with me--there is a smidgeon of aquatic saline noticeable at the finish.

This beer certainly doesn't taste as strong as its billing, which makes it a deliciously dangerous ale. Strong, yet subtle, Hog Island is a fine piece of brewing. It might be a bit sweet and weighty, but not by much.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.