What makes a dark beer dark? Alchemy, obviously. That and the ancient, malted sorcery of fire-kissed grains—the kind that have been roasted into oblivion until they shimmer with hues of burnt sugar, charred toast, espresso, and midnight oil. While every beer owes its soul to malt, dark beers take it further, diving deep into the obsidian abyss where chocolate, caramel, and smoky dreamstuff live. It’s here, in this malty underworld, that black lagers (schwarzbiers), mysterious porters, and hulking stouts emerge like caffeinated deities of the taster glass.
And let’s be honest: the line between stout and porter is thinner than your willpower near a plate of pub nachos. Stouts were once just “stout porters,” built bigger, bolder, broodier. Today, the overlap is a beautiful chaos—a flavor Venn diagram of roasted bliss. Whether you like them silky or sharp, dessert-like or devilish, there’s a dark beer for every mood, every evening, every long stare into the void.
So as part of our brooding, soul-hugging, Darkwave beer series, Peaks & Pints invites you to sink once again into the shadows with Peaks and Pints Pilot Program: Dark Beer Flight—seven beers on tap, flights to-go, and a glorious celebration of the delicious dark arts, running right through Black Friday. Embrace the gloom. Sip the night.
Peaks and Pints Pilot Program: Dark Beer Flight
Wet Coast Holiday Jeer!
6.5% ABV
Wet Coast Brewing builds their annual Holiday Jeer! Winter ale around a full-bodied stout and then hit it in the face with big dose of molasses to provide notes of prunes and burnt sugar. They top it off with the addition of ginger, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves and this dark beer turns into the fire-side sipper your holidays require.
Rainy Daze Haulin’ Oats
7.4% ABV, 35 IBU
Rainy Daze Brewing’s velvety oatmeal stout hits the nose with dark toasted malt, cocoa, slight coffee, and vanilla. The flavor is dark toasted malt with moderate char, coffee, baking chocolate and a touch of vanilla. It’s a solid, roasty oatmeal stout with a medium body and moderate creaminess topped mild bitter chocolate notes and slight vanilla.
Pelican Bad Santa
7.5% ABV, 65 IBU
“I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” sung by former jockey Jimmy Boyd, takes a humorous approach to a child’s shocking discovery of his mother’s infidelity. The Pelican Pub & Brewery in Pacific City, Oregon, brews a Cascadian dark ale that pairs with Mommy’s merry adulterer — Bad Santa. This mysterious dark elixir is filled with complex malt flavors and aromas with toasted malt and roast character, blending seamlessly to the alluring herbal hop aroma that comes from copious amounts of Fuggle hops. Bad Santa doesn’t care if Jack Skellington has been naughty or nice; he just wants Mommy.
Great Divide Horchata Yeti
9.5% ABV
With origins dating back to the 13th century, horchata-like beverages have a cross-cultural appeal similar to Great Divide Brewing’s mystical Yeti. New World versions of the creamy beverage utilize a white rice base as does Great Divide’s Horchata Yeti imperial stout. Rice is added to the base Yeti imperials stout malt bill along with lactose sugar to impart creaminess and sweetness. Cinnamon and vanilla enhance the pastry-esque qualities of this stout.
Bale Breaker Wood & Wire
10% ABV
Aged for 2 months in whiskey barrels, this full-bodied, robust imperial whiskey stout hits the nose with chocolate, smoke, bourbon, and vanilla. Bale Breaker Brewing utilizes 10 malt varieties for complexity, then balances the beast with Simcoe, Palisade, and Ahtanum hops. It’s a two-time bronze winner at the Washington Beer Awards too.
LINK: Peaks & Pints cooler inventory
