Shorts Brewing Company, established in 2004 by owner and head brewer Joe Short, is famous for pushing the boundaries when it comes to the art of craft brewing. For such a young brewery, the Shorts Brewing Company has excelled in crafting some of the finest beers that Michigan has to offer, even winning a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival for their experimental Key Lime Pie beer. It amazes me that such a young and small brewery that only ships their beer inside the borders of our great beer state of Michigan were able to win such a prestigious award.
Oddball beers including the Key Lime Pie, Strawberry Short's Cake and the Bloody Beer (a bloody mary style beer brewed with tomato, horseradish and celery) have put Shorts on the map for beer lovers across the country. Their latest offering, the Mystery Stout, is no exception.
The Mystery Stout, an imperial oatmeal stout brewed with cocoa and molasses, continues this trend of pushing the limits of what beer can become in this day and age of innovative brewing. The Mystery Stout reminds me of a sleepy winter morning breakfast, complete with hints of coffee, chocolate and warm oatmeal. The beer itself drinks lighter than most stouts, which is a pleasant reprise from the "meal in a bottle" stouts that most breweries release in these cold winter months. Although not specifically mentioned, I taste plenty of rich coffee flavors throughout, with the mellow taste of rolled oats and cocoa powder. The molasses lingers as slightly sweet afterthought, completing this easy drinking stout ale.
All things considered, The Shorts Brewing Company has once again put out a very tasty beer, continuing their trend of releasing fantastic experimental craft beers.
"Hand Crafted By People Who Care In Northern Michigan", a motto Shorts sticks by and it shows. I can taste all of the hard work put into the Mystery Stout, as well as the rest of Shorts' current line-up of microbrewed beers. I firmly believe that the Shorts Brewing Company crafts some of the best beer in the state of Michigan, if not our whole entire country.
"Life Is Shorts, Drink It While You're Here."
-Jason
