Black Strap Stout, Black Strap Cookies

Today is BridgePort Brewing’s 22nd anniversary so I thought it was time to pull out the cookies they sent me that are made using their Black Strap Stout. This is the second year that Cougar Mountain cookies has made the “cocoa-based cookie with chocolate chunks” for their “flavor of the month.”

The stout is inky black with a thick tan head and subtle aromas of ginger, molasses and milk chocolate. The beer slides smoothly on the tongue with flavors of bitter chocolate, molasses and malt and just a touch of sweetness. The cookies are dry, soft and chewy with bursts of chocolate in the chunks. The chocolate notes and molasses in the beer perfectly compliments the cookies and even dipping them in the beer works nicely. The interplay of dry and wet, not surprisingly, leaves you wanting one and then the other almost as a tonic, but it has the effect of making the combination highly addictive.

From the combined press release:

The cocoa-based cookie with chocolate chunks accentuates the flavor profile found in BridgePort’s Black Strap Stout, specifically chocolate, molasses, and coffee. The alcohol bakes out of the cookie, but the flavors found in the beer remain, adding considerable interest to an already tasty cookie.

The combination is not as odd as it might seem. For years, beer lovers have explored the extraordinary flavors that come from combining malty, craft-brewed beers with fine chocolates and decadent desserts. Stout floats are dessert mainstay in brewpubs across the nation.

More from the press release

According to David Saulnier, president of Cougar Mountain Baking Co., the subtleties and complexities of the cookie’s flavor appeal to an adult audience. “Last year when we first introduced the Double Chocolate Stout, we had quadruple the normal number of customer comments, nearly all of those being positive. People were wowed by such an original flavor, and they thought the resulting cookie was great!”

Saulnier, who founded Cougar Mountain Baking Co. in 1988, enjoys collaborating with other Northwest companies who share his philosophy of producing high-quality, handcrafted products. He has been a fan of BridgePort Ales for some time, and the alliance between the two companies seemed a natural fit.

As Oregon’s oldest craft brewery, BridgePort has evolved over the past 22 years from a microbrewery to a regional leader in the craft brewing market, while remaining faithful to its commitment to producing high-quality, innovative craft ales that are true to their heritage. Its Black Strap Stout features a malty, caramel flavor up front with a distinctive dry-roasted bitterness in the finish. A generous dose of Northwest hops mingles with the sweetness of black strap molasses to yield a full-bodied ale that pours with a rich, creamy head.

Cougar Mountain’s Flavor of the Month item has been in existence for 15 years, and the company uses it as a way to experiment with flavors, take advantage of seasonal ingredients, and have fun. Like all of Cougar Mountain’s cookies, Double Chocolate Stout does not contain any hydrogenated oils or trans fats. Cougar Mountain Gourmet Cookies come eight cookies to a box, which is made from 100% recycled paper. Each of the regular varieties is named for Seattle-area neighborhoods, parks or landmarks. The cookies may also be purchased individually at select locations.

Comments

Tex says

November 6, 2006 at 9:05 pm

Dear Mr. Snarky,

Gosh. Don’t you realize Bridgeport is now owned by …Texans? Therefore, they CAN’T make anything good.

Remember, in your Texas chili article you wrote: “If he’d been a Texas native, I might more easily forgive his apparent lack of beer savvy, but here in California as a food writer it’s an unpardonable sin.”

Tex