Magical Wiki: Black & Tan

I’m an information junkie and the Internutz is a magical web of information, useful and otherwise, that I can lose myself in for hours at a time. Wikipedia, of course, is an information junkie’s cyber-crackhouse, with useful entries on almost anything you can think of — except, oddly, “Guy LeCharles Gonzalez” (someone needs to fix that!) — and a friend of mine discovered my latest favorite, “Black and Tan“, which includes an impressive list of variations on the theme, including:

Black & Black : A blend of Guinness Extra Stout and Guinness Draught
Black & Orange: Stout and pumpkin ale
Black Magic: Half Guinness and Half Magic Hat #9

Generally speaking, a Black & Tan should only be made with Guinness Stout, but Cape Ann Brewing Company‘s Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout is a good substitute for Black & Orange.

Two more questionable combinations that I suspect are popular at McCain/Palin rallies:

Black Bastard, aka, Arrogant Black: Guinness and Arrogant Bastard Ale
San Patricios: Half Guinness and half any Mexican beer

Of course, my favorite Guinness combo will always be the Irish Car Bomb.

Interestingly, the article notes that Black and Tan’s are not Irish concoctions, but British, and that they actually have “image problems in parts of Ireland and elsewhere due to the notorious sectarian paramilitary force during the 1920s called the Black and Tans.”

Remember, knowing is half the battle.

Written by Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Guy LeCharles Gonzalez is the Chief Content Officer for LibraryPass, and former publisher & marketing director for Writer’s Digest. Previously, he was also project lead for the Panorama Project; director, content strategy & audience development for Library Journal & School Library Journal; and founding director of programming & business development for the original Digital Book World.