The Next Rotating Dark

I know I'm going to take some heat from my Oatmeal Stout fans, but I'm trying out another new dark beer.

Last year, I saw a recipe for a "Breakfast Stout" that had a very interesting ingredient list.  The recipe was based on Founder's Breakfast Stout.  From what I gather, the name comes from the fact that there is oatmeal as well and two kinds of coffee in this ale.  It also includes dark bittersweet chocolate and cacao nibs. 

Cacao nibs?  What are those?  (I didn't know, either.)  These are the beans from the cacao (cocoa) plant which are roasted and shelled.  They have a nice chocolate, yet bitter flavor and are nutty.  The next step was to find a source for them.  Luckily I found them right here:

Located on Old World Third Street in Downtown Milwaukee, The Spice House nearly slaps you in the face with the fragrant aromas as soon as you open the door. 

It is a charming store that was bustling with activity during my visit.

Anyway, I picked up my 2# of nibs, and walked out with a much lighter wallet.  These suckers don't come cheap, but nothing is too good for the St. Francis beer lovers!

Weighing out the nibs

I'll pick up the rest of the ingredients this weekend and plan on brewing this up on Tuesday.  There will probably be a coffee house visit as well.  The recipe calls for Sumatran and Kona coffee.    I will end up cold-brewing the coffee and adding it to the boil.  This stout will probably be available around July 27 or so.  I'll keep you posted.

By the way, the Summer Night Saison tapping was one of our biggest to date.  We went through a lot of it, and it continues to roll out of here.  Pick yours up while you can.  I don't think it's going to last until our Dortmunder Export tapping which will take place on August 10th for the Mug Club.  I'll write more about that one soon.