Thursday, October 17, 2024

Beer Review - Wizard's Brew

The fire breathing stone dragon sits atop the Gringotts Wizarding Bank at the end of Diagon Alley
Looking Up Towards the Gringotts Wizarding Bank



It’s a dark evening and a green light illuminates the streets.

Death Eaters are scurrying around the bystanders inspecting arms for dark marks. I wander over and show the tallest my mark, pointing my wand at a Jungle Cruise boat where the dark mark should be. He looks at me, looks at my wife, and glances into the camera saying with no words, “This Guy!”

With this proud Hufflepuff staring down a dark wizard, it was time to slide over to The Hopping Pot in Diagon Alley. I grabbed some “Frozen Butterbeers” for my loved ones and a “Wizard’s Brew” to reward myself for facing off against evil. A Death Eater did run through the line, but I had my wand at the ready. 

A plastic pint of dark brown Wizard's Brew help up in Diagon Alley
A Pint of "Wizard's Brew"


“Wizard’s Brew” is a beer, I’ve tried to make appear a few times. I keep trying to accio it in the Hog’s Head in Hogsmeade, but it’s exclusive to Universal Studio’s Florida and Diagon Alley in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I’ve been wanting to grab this pint because it’s the stout offering among the Wizarding beers. And if anything howls English beer to me it’s porters and stouts. This is a 5.7 ABV milk stout with 0 IBUs. The zero IBU stands out, as the malty finish gives it a taste of sweet bread. The mouthfeel is very silky and pleasant. To me, this is very much a beautiful marriage of an English brew and a Wizarding ale at the same time. It is what I have been looking for in the Wizarding World and so sets the mood.

Now others in my party did not agree. They took a big sip and made a face, as this is a dark brown to black colored beer. And I think the color sets an expectation of what one should be tasting bitterness. No additional sips were taken or offered. I think if they were blindfolded, they may have had a different opinion of the potion. Me…I want a sweet cookie to pair with this, and I’ll admit I traded sips between “Wizard’s Brew” and “Butterbeer”. I found this to be a really mellow and relaxing sipping treat.
 

This is another Wizard beer from Carib Brewing USA. As a stout a sweet or milk stout relies on the flavor from the dark malts making it bready. But there is typically an additional flavor punch from the addition of milk sugar or lactose. And as you can imagine that does add silkiness, the creamy element, and the sweetness, the sugar. It can transfigure a more normal or dry style stout into that sweet bready pint that I enjoyed as dueling wizards attacked the Death Eaters around me.

Who Drinks This? Me! If you like dark beers or English-style craft beers, this is for you and are in Diagon Alley so only Wizarding pints for you. I’d like to see a barrel-aged beer in a Central Florida theme park, but know due to tastes and profit margins that won’t happen. However, if dark beers are not your style or taste…you may need to look for a “Dark Forest Ale” or a “Hog’s Head Brew” instead. Sadly for the Beertenders of the Hog’s Head, I will probably still try to order it in Islands of Adventure.

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