Samuel Smith's Organic Chocolate Stout

kbelanger140

When I typed in Samuel Smith's Organic Chocolate Stout Beer in myfitnesspal, I was amazed that for Sugar grams, the amount was zero (0). I find that hard to believe since the beer is made from chocolate and cane sugar. Can any one please advise?

Hornsby

Best beer on the planet.

CyberTone

​During fermentation, the yeast turns the sugars into alcohol, carbon dioxide, and other components. The chocolate flavor is from the aromatic compounds, usually flavonoids, from the cocoa beans.

References:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewing
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavonoid

RosieWest8

There is no residual sugar left after the fermentation process. There are some styles of beer that do contain residual sugar that lends a true sweet taste (not just malty) to the beer or sometimes sugars are added if they've all fermented out to attain the desired taste.

enterdanger

more importantly how did it taste? I love a good stout.

UpEarly

The reason it's probably listed like that is that it's hard to find *complete* nutritional data on most craft beers. I don't think Samuel Smith beers have nutrition labels like cheap commercially-produced beer (Bud, Miller, Coors.) You can come close to estimating the calorie count of beer based on it's ABV% and the sweetness of the finished brew. Most craft entries in the MFP database come from ratebeer.com. Ratebeer provides a calorie estimate for a 12 oz serving, but none of the other nutritional data. I like good craft beer, I don't care about sugar, so calories alone are enough data for me. :-)

If you want more science-y information, this is helpful: http://byo.com/stories/issue/item/408-calculating-alcohol-content-attenuation-extract-and-calories-advanced-homebrewing

But it's also wrong to assume that sugar is almost always consumed by the fermentation process. Depending on style, beers have wildly different attenuation.

UpEarly

This is helpful, too. It covers the residual sugars that you can expect to find in different styles:
http://www.beeroftomorrow.com/calories-in-craft-beer/

glevinso

RosieWest8 wrote: »

There is no residual sugar left after the fermentation process. There are some styles of beer that do contain residual sugar that lends a true sweet taste (not just malty) to the beer or sometimes sugars are added if they've all fermented out to attain the desired taste.

All beers do, otherwise they would only taste like watery alcohol.

The particular beer in question has more than most though.

And unless a brewery literally sterilizes the beer after fermentation, adding more sugar is going to cause a secondary fermentation to occur. Filtering isn't enough to prevent that.

sjaplo

mmmmmmmm stout. Also a low carb beverage and a great breakfast beer.

glevinso

sjaplo wrote: »

mmmmmmmm stout. Also a low carb beverage and a great breakfast beer.

I have to admit I was actually proud of myself 2 weekends ago when I logged a beer in my breakfast column. I was at a cyclocross race, and you cant have cyclocross without beer

Jruzer

Cane sugar?

glevinso

kbelanger140 wrote: »

When I typed in Samuel Smith's Organic Chocolate Stout Beer in myfitnesspal, I was amazed that for Sugar grams, the amount was zero (0). I find that hard to believe since the beer is made from chocolate and cane sugar. Can any one please advise?

The sugar ferments into CO2 and alcohol. A little bit is left, sure, but not much. I actually find it hard to believe Sam Smith adds cane sugar to the wort for this beer. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

Jruzer

I'm guessing the sugar is "normal" sugars in the wort: mostly maltose, with other sugars of varying size, and unfermentable dextrins.

"Beer" made from cane sugar is pretty much just a watery precursor to rum or moonshine.