Four types of chocolate-style beer for the Valentine's season will be on sale from Sankt Gallen on January 9th. The 2020 limited chocolate beer "Double Mint Chocolate Stout", which uses two types of mint, seems to be interesting.

Although it is commonly known as "chocolate beer," chocolate is not actually used and it has no sweetness.

However, while the base malt used in regular beer is roasted at about 85 degrees Celsius, the malt in chocolate beer is processed at a high temperature of about 160 degrees Celsius to a dark brown color on the verge of burning. It has a bittersweet bitter chocolate-like flavor when bitten, and also has a savory aroma like cacao.


The types and prices of chocolate beer that will appear in Sankt Gallen in 2020 are as follows. Both are stouts (black) in 330 ml bottles. Notation does not include tax.

Imperial chocolate

First of all, "Imperial Chocolate Stout" is 600 yen. A representative chocolate beer from Sankt Gallen, which has been sold every year since 2006 for the Valentine season only. It has a super-rich taste that uses about three times as many ingredients as regular dark beer. The foam is hard and black like a shake, and it is also described as "a bitter chocolate cake to drink". Alcohol is as high as 9% and can be aged for 2 years like wine.

Double mint chocolate

"Double mint chocolate stout" is 500 yen. It is made from two types of mint, spearmint and peppermint. The mint used for one preparation is about 30 kg. Only the leaves are picked one by one and crushed to make the aroma easier to come out before being added to the wort.




It is a smooth and rich chocolate beer when you drink one sip, but the refreshing feeling of mint increases as you continue to drink two or three sip, and by the end of the drink, the mouth is filled with the refreshing aftertaste of mint. According to Sankt Gallen, "a beer that the Chocomin Party should definitely drink". Alcohol is 7%. This flavor is limited to 2020.

Orange chocolate

"Orange chocolate stout" is 500 yen. A flavor reminiscent of "Orange", a sweet made by coating orange peel with chocolate. Bitter orange (daidai) orange, which is a raw material of marmalade and is not suitable for raw food, is finely chopped together with the skin, simmered for a long time to make jam, the flavor is condensed, and fermented according to the wort that is the source of beer. I will be forced to. The orange used is from Kanagawa. The whole skin and fruit are included, leaving a bitter taste like marmalade. Alcohol is 6.5%.



Since the amount of fruit used is larger than that recognized as beer in Japan, it is classified as "happoshu", but the tax rate is the same as that of beer due to the high malt rate.

Sweet vanilla

"Sweet Vanilla Stout Valentine Label" is 460 yen. The scent of vanilla is blended into a rich dark beer like espresso. Instead of artificial products such as vanilla essence, A grade vanilla from Papua New Guinea, which is used for Western confectionery, is added after each cut is made. The mouth is sweet and the back is like vanilla chocolate. Alcohol is 6.5%.


This beer is sold all year round, but a limited number of Valentine's labels will be available from January 9th.

Bottled beer will be sold at the liquor stores of major department stores nationwide. Details will be posted on the official website of Sankt Gallen. Also, at "Furusato Matsuri Tokyo 2020" to be held at Tokyo Dome from January 10th to 19th, you can taste 4 kinds of chocolate beer in barrels and buy bottles.