Foothills Brewing: Sexual History of Sexual Chocolate

When I came across a recent blog post by Foothills Brewing titled “Sexual History,” I had to see what it was about. Turns out the brewery’s annual release of the barrel-aged version of their imperial stout, Sexual Chocolate was released to their adoring fans on September 6. In honor of the release, Foothills shared the short history of the beer style, and what inspired brewer Jamie Bartholomaus to name this beer, Sexual Chocolate.

Beer History: The Russian Imperial Stout

Much like, India Pale Ale, the namesake country has little to do with the creation of the style. In this case, the name has more to do with the style’s adoration by the Russian Emperor, Peter the Great. According to the Foothills blog, Peter the Great “took a trip to England in 1698 and, taking a brief respite from his native vodka, decided to try the dark local beer—and loved it. He thought, ‘Hey this would go over big in the future Soviet Union.’ Or something to that effect.”

History of Sex-ual Chocolate

While the barrel-aged version of this beer is released in September, the original is released in February, to celebrate Valentine’s Day. The cocoa-infused Sexual Chocolate weighs in at over 9 percent ABV, and attracts hundreds to the brewery every year to get their hands on this special release.

Check out the Foothills’ blog Musings and Mashings, “Sexual History” to find out where the name came from.

Andy Sparhawk

Andy Sparhawk, the Brewers Association's acting editor-in-chief for CraftBeer.com. Andy is a Certified Cicerone® and BJCP Beer Judge. He lives in Westminster, Colorado where he is an avid craft beer enthusiast. On occasion, Andy is inspired to write on his experiences with craft beer, and if they are not too ridiculous, you might see the results here on CraftBeer.com.

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