Belikin’s Holiday Drink: Sorrel Stout

I’d been looking forward to trying a Belikin sorrel stout since it was announced last weekend.  I know Ambergris Brewing Company (on the north end of town) is serving it…but the other bars I asked had none.  I need to add it to my post King of Beers – my in depth yet very amateur coverage of the beers in Belize.

So I purchased one at Super Buy South yesterday on my way home.

Let me back up.  Belikin is doing a special holiday beer for 2011 called “Sorrel Stout”.  I LOVE the idea.  I love when they make the September-fest lagers.  (More choice is good!)  I hope they do a t-shirt with this cute bottle cap on it.

I also love Classic Stout (with the navy cap) and enjoy a black and tan made with stout and regular now and again.   Be careful though what you ask for at the store…When I went to Super Buy this afternoon to ask if they have it in stock, I asked for the new stout…the one with the red top.

The guy EMBARRASSINGLY ran to get a bottle of “red top”, the over proof rum that only serious boozers drink. The stuff that comes in half full old lighthouse bottles with a red top on it.  About 10 people saw him handing me the bottle.  Ugh.  My reputation flushes further down the drain.

Just avoid the confusion by being very specific…or you are going to be sipping a “rum” that burns the skin right out of your mouth.  Your liver will thank me.

Sorrel in the Caribbean/Mexico apparently means an herbal flavoring often used in drinks like agua de Jamaica.  It seems to be a fruit-like flavoring.  Definitions seem to vary.

This beverage does not taste like fruit.  The classic stout (blue top) is rich and honey-like, this is more like heavy liquid gingerbread.  Very sweet and a bit artificial.  Belikin, I am sorry…I love you but this flavor is not my cup of tea.

But everyone…try it!  Just because I don’t like doesn’t mean it won’t be your new fave.  And it’s a fun and festive Christmas alternative.   I am in no way a beer aficionado (my enthusiasm vastly outweighs my expertise in the subject) so let me know what you think.