What to expect
A dark beer often linked with roasted malt notes. Stouts can show coffee, cocoa or toasted flavours. The colour tells you little about strength: check the ABV on the menu.
How stout is made
A stout gets its dark colour and roasted character from grains such as roasted barley or dark malt along with a base malt. The brewer mashes and boils the wort, adds hops for balance, and generally ferments with ale yeast. Some recipes include oats for texture or extra ingredients such as coffee or cocoa. Those additions are choices, not requirements.
What makes stout different
Roasted grain is the clearest difference from the pale beers in this guide. It can bring coffee-like, toasted or cocoa-like notes even when no coffee or chocolate was added. Stout can be dry or sweet, modest or strong. Dark colour by itself does not tell you the alcohol level or whether the beer contains lactose.
What to ask for
If you like coffee or dark chocolate, this is a useful place to start.
Find a local version
Beer lists change. Ask a local brewery what is currently on tap, or check its latest online list before you travel.
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