Dark Horse Fore

I've had a few smoked beers on here before and I've grown weary of them because they don't seem to work out. But I couldn't resist giving Fore a shot. Part of Dark Horse's "Stout Series", Fore features "hardwood smoked malt", as well as "smoked chocolate" (wut) and coffee (according to their website). How does this managerie of flavors translate to pancakes?

The beer itself is a dark, rich, and smooth stout. The smokiness is definitely there, but it doesn't hit you in the face like some other smoked beers, which is kind of nice. The flavor definitely fills out as it warms, but it's nice cold as well. There's an impressive lack of bitterness to this beer.

Prep/Cooking

In batter form, Fore lost almost all of its smoked flavors, but the batter really brought out the complexity of the malt. There was a hint of sweetness, almost like a high-percentage dark chocolate.

Results

These pancakes turned out surprisingly delightful. They weren't at all smoky like their liquid counterpart, but they had a really rich texture and flavor. All of the delicacy of flavor in the beer/batter came through strong in the pancakes, and while they were a little flat (as was the beer coming out of the bottle), the interior was light and fluffy.

The Decision

• Pancakes: Yes. I would definitely take the pancakes over the beer. The beer isn't bad but the pancakes are delightful.
• Syrup: Yes. It's rare that syrup doesn't ruin pancakes, especially something like smoked pancakes.

Also, a brief Public Service Announcement about making smoked beer pancakes: Make sure you don't overcook them at all. A few of the pancakes in this batch were a little more well-done than others and you can definitely tell the difference with a delicate flavor like smokiness.

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