On Friday, November 21st, Bicycle Brewing in Østerbro launched their barrel-aged vanilla stout! For this special occasion, we selected four different chocolates to pair with the beer and turned it into a stout and chocolate pairing event.
So, what did Jack and I (Vitoria) choose for this specific beer?
A few days before the event, we got our bottle to taste and decide on the pairings. One evening, we sat down at home, opened the not-yet-released stout, gathered a few different chocolate origins, and started testing. Not every chocolate works well—some don’t do much at all—but we do have a few reliable bars that make an incredible pairing. So, here’s what we picked:
Qori Warmi (Naive) – We usually go with Qori Warmi from Beaningful, as it pairs beautifully with almost anything. But we had just received the one from Naive, and I was (and still am) in love with it – When I try to describe this chocolate, the idea that comes to mind is always of black tea with raspberry flavor notes. As always, Qori Warmi proved to be a perfect match.
Semuliki Forest (Beaningful) This one… I like to describe it as “the whisky bar.” I didn’t love it at first, but after several rum and whisky tastings (now a certified fan!), I’ve grown to really appreciate it. We actually discovered how well it pairs with beer at the first beer event we’ve ever participated, and it’s been the undisputed king of beer pairings ever since. With the vanilla stout, it performed exactly as expected—amazing.
Pipa Barrel-Aged Dark Chocolate – I thought—why not pair a barrel-aged chocolate with a barrel-aged stout? It made perfect sense. And once you try this bar, you’ll understand our obsession with it.
Stone Pine Dark Chocolate – Coming from outside Europe, “stone pine” was something new to me. But Jack suggested we give it a try, and I’m so glad we did—it turned out to be an incredible pairing.
Most people don’t immediately think of chocolate and beer together, but that’s a mistake. We were thrilled to see how open everyone was to the idea at the event—and how much they enjoyed it. We can’t wait for more events like this!
