For those of you who drink at the growing number of excellent beer bars throughout the state, you have probably seen a few stouts or porters offered on nitro. While some of you may think of nitro as your favorite American Gladiator or the gas that you beg your dentist to let you inhale while you wait in his chair, it has a whole different meaning when it comes to beer. Most beers are carbonated with CO2, either naturally in the bottle or artificially to bring the beer from the keg to the draft tap. Nitrogen is an alternative to CO2, and it helps make the beer creamier and fluffier. Very few beers are packaged with nitrogen, and for years the only ones that came to mind were Guinness and Boddingtons. Both of these examples used a widget in the can or bottle to release nitrogen once the package was opened. The folks at Left Hand Brewing Co. have spent many years and dollars perfecting a way to bottle their famous and award winning Milk Stout with nitrogen without a widget.

For years Left Hand’s Milk Stout has been a favorite beer of mine. The sweet, malty, chocolate flavors

always make for a great beer to enjoy in the cold weather or use to make black and tans, Irish car bombs and adding a scoop of vanilla ice cream for an adult ice cream float. I have had this beer on nitro before at bars around town, but I was happy to see the bottled version of the nitro stout hit our stores this past week. Then I had the idea to compare the regular bottle and the nitro bottle for this article.

Both beers have the same exact flavor profile. I think more of the coffee flavors come across on the regular bottle, while more of the chocolate flavors come across in the nitro version. While I enjoy both of them, I really enjoyed the extra creaminess of the nitro more than I thought I would. I think the nitro bottle will also mix better into the beer cocktail ideas I previously mentioned. I will never refuse a Left Hand Milk Stout, but if both options are available to me, I will go for the nitro version. The creamier the beer gets the more it felt like it coated my palate and prolonged the finish. When you are looking for something new or different, this is a great beer to try. I only hope to see more beer bottled with nitro.

Keep your glasses half full,

Evan

Beer blogger Evan Kaye is a regional manager in the Palm Beach area.