Let\u2019s see who is spreading holiday cheer today!<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.2beerguys.com\/images\/forblog\/advent13\/carla-xmas.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
Blogger:<\/strong> Carla Companion Beer Details:<\/strong><\/p>\n Commercial Description:<\/strong> Why I \u00a0selected the Shipyard Brewing Mint Chocolate Stout:<\/strong> The initial licorice aroma let me know that a Thin Mint – like brew was probably not in the cards here. The aroma was inviting, but not altogether minty or chocolately. It was enigmatically just slightly medicinal, and reminded me a little of the anise-flavored cookies that I make each christmas.<\/p>\n Upon having a sip, I was initially happy to not be overwhelmed by mint. My initial impression, however, was short lived. While chocolatey, smooth and well-executed, the stout base of the stout was not revolutionary, but was pleasant. It was what happened after I swallowed that I wasn\u2019t necessarily expecting.<\/p>\n The commercial description of this beer includes the phrase, \u201csubtle spearmint finish.\u201d I would like to politely disagree. There is nothing subtle about that last wash of mint that coats the inside of your mouth and tongue.<\/p>\n The mintiness, though not offensive, was forward – and reminded me a little of the taste of mint leftover from brushing one\u2019s teeth. It wasn\u2019t that the mint flavor wasn\u2019t pleasant, it was just that when the stout beer left – all that remained was a quite literal and non-subtle mint coating.<\/p>\n That being said, it could be compared to a strongly mint hot chocolate – where the flavoring is obvious and assertive – but festive and fun to drink. If you are expecting subtlety and harmony, however, you might have to find that in another Christmas brew.<\/p>\n About The Beer Babe:<\/strong> For more information, please visit: http:\/\/www.thebeerbabe.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n About Shipyard Brewing Company:<\/strong> For more information, please visit: http:\/\/www.shipyard.com<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n @BeerBabe @ShipyardBrewing To celebrate the Holiday Season, 2Beerguys.com and Seacoastbeveragelab.com have teamed up with beer bloggers around the country to host the third annual beer bloggers advent calendar. This is the season of sharing and we intend to share our love of beer with you. \u00a031 Bloggers Blogging \u2013 click here for the running list […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":9240,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1730,113],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/carla-xmas.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9226"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9226"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9226\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9238,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9226\/revisions\/9238"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/2beerguys.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nBlog Name:<\/strong> The Beer Babe
\nTwitter\/Facebook\/Untappd:<\/strong> @beerbabe (Twitter) facebook.com\/thebeerbabe, thebeerbabe on Untappd
\nBeer:<\/strong> Shipyard Mint Chocolate Stout
\nBrewery:<\/strong> Shipyard Brewing Company, Portland, ME<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.2beerguys.com\/images\/forblog\/advent13\/shipyard-mint-chocolate-stout-label.png\")
<\/p>\n\n
\nMint Chocolate Stout is a dark, silky beer with aromas of chocolate and licorice. Smooth chocolate and coffee flavors upfront lead to a subtle spearmint finish. To fully enjoy all of the flavors of this ale, it is best drunk at 55 degrees Fahrenheit.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.2beerguys.com\/images\/forblog\/advent13\/shipyard-mint-choc-stout.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\nWhen a well-loved Maine Brewery releases a new beer in their Pugsley Signature Series, I usually take notice. This time, the unorthodox combination of ingredients – including the use of spearmint instead of peppermint to compliment a dark winter stout – intrigued me, and lead me to bring a bottle of it home. I was wondering if it could be a nice fit with the winter holiday season, which seems to come all too early and last a little too long for my taste here in Maine. I do like mint (and stouts) so I thought it was an interesting attempt to twist on a classic combination of mint and chocolate. My hopes were that it would taste something like a Girl Scout Cookie.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.2beerguys.com\/images\/forblog\/advent13\/the-beer-babe-logo.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/p>\n
\nCarla Companion is a beer blogger for the Portland Press Herald and the Beer Babe.com. She has been writing about craft beer since 2007.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.2beerguys.com\/images\/forblog\/advent13\/shipyard-brewing-logo.jpeg\"){kind=logo}
<\/p>\n
\nThe Shipyard Brewing Company began in 1992 at Federal Jack\u2019s Restaurant and Brew Pub in Kennebunk. Demand for Shipyard ales soon outpaced the small operation and, to keep up with orders for their fine hand-crafted ales, in 1994 Fred Forsley and Alan Pugsley opened the Shipyard Brewing Company on the historic waterfront in Portland. All Shipyard\u2019s beer is hand-brewed from recipes developed by Master Brewer Alan Pugsley, who apprenticed at the world-famous Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire, England under the tutelage of renowned Master Brewer Peter Austin.<\/p>\nRelated articles across the web<\/h3>\n
\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/i.zemanta.com\/233264159_150_150.jpg\")
<\/a>Beer Advent Calendar – Day 23: Saison Noel presented by Benjamin Moore<\/a><\/li>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/i.zemanta.com\/232926152_150_150.jpg\")
<\/a>Beer Advent Calendar – Day 22: Sah Tea presented by Michael Meredith<\/a><\/li>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/i.zemanta.com\/232993117_150_150.jpg\")
<\/a>Beer Advent Calendar – Day 21: Bad Santa Cascadian Dark Ale presented by Alan McCormick<\/a><\/li>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/i.zemanta.com\/232832578_150_150.jpg\")
<\/a>Beer Advent Calendar – Day 20: Copp G Morning presented by Gerard Walen<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"