Quick! Before the weather starts warming up. While there's still a nip in the air. Find an opportunity to indulge in arguably the finest winter beer ever invented: stout. Even the name sounds reassuringly old-fashioned and comforting, doesn't it? Sturdy, solid, stout. The dictionary calls up words such as thick, brave and determined. This dark beer is brewed using malted barley that has been roasted until it resembles small, dark coffee beans in appearance and aroma. Roasting gives stout its characteristic opaque black appearance, its depth of flavour and its dark chocolate-like bitterness. While Guinness is a deserved ambassador for stout around the world, Australia's microbreweries are producing staggering examples of stout in richer, sweeter, stronger styles - perfect for the sweet and savoury hit of this upmarket sandwich.
Australian stout, with its dark-chocolate bitterness, is perfect with this gutsy, savoury yet sweet sandwich.