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Blog Post
Introducing Carachino! Our new collaboration with Mad Squirrel Brewery
James Marinos • Nov 25, 2021
Kokebi Coffee | Mad Squirrel Brewery Collaboration | Carachino
The Mad Squirrel Brewery
has long been one of our favourites, and for more than one reason. Beyond producing consistently quality beers, they have been a cornerstone of the Hertfordshire craft brewing landscape since being established over a decade ago in local Hertford town. As fans of the brewery, we were delighted to meet with them to discuss our latest collaboration on a unique coffee-based Winter stout for their range.
This wouldn’t be the first time we have worked on a collaboration with a brewery using Kokebi Coffee either. Previously we have collaborated with Glasgow based Overtone Brewing Co
on two Imperial Stouts, Vanilla Froth
and Coconut Froth, which used our Super Crema
blend in both instances to create a flavoursome Latte Stout. This time, Mad Squirrel’s approach was to be different, and consequently a distinctive blend in its own right was selected in order to achieve this unique beer, Carachino.
The order of the day was to create a Caramel Macchiato stout which demanded plenty of sweet, dark chocolate nuances. For that reason we elected our Intenso
blend, which is a dark roast coffee at a strength of 5/6, made using 100% Arabica beans which provides a rich, dark chocolate flavour. Without further ado we began preparing, grinding and packaging enough Intenso to fill the tanks at the brewery, and within a few weeks we were back at Mad Squirrel brewery for a tank tasting.
The results were outstanding, but upon further discussions with their brewing team, they decided to leave the coffee in for a few weeks longer to further infuse. Additionally, the inclusion of sea salt was nominated to help counterbalance some of the sweeter flavour nuances and thus the brew was complete!
The release announcement was now confirmed, which coincides with the unveiling of Mad Squirrel‘s annual Christmas Pastry Pack, of which Carachino also features! The 2021 Christmas Pastry Pack features ‘Hoodblink’, a DBL Raspberry White Stout at 8.0 ABV, ‘Crack Le Whip’, a DBL Walnut Milk Stout at 8.0 ABV and of course ‘Carachino’ our Caramel Macchiato Stout at 9.0 ABV – You can order yours from tomorrow in their Black Friday sale here.
With that said, let’s not forget about Carachino itself, which is a testament to the excellent quality of brewing at Mad Squirrel and our Intenso coffee. Upon opening the can you’re treated to aromas of both coffee and caramel with vanilla like fragrance notes. The taste doesn’t disappoint either! Smooth and sweet, caramel, vanilla, chocolate and coffee romance the senses in an exceptionally even finish, helped further by the added oats and lactose. There’s also a gently malty and dry bitterness to this beer, which counterbalances the sweeter profiles of this 9.0 ABV Imperial Stout thanks to the added sea salt, malts and hops.
An abundance of malts were used in this beer, including heavily roasted chocolate malts and lighter malts with sweeter profiles. These were chosen in conjunction with Herkules hops which with their bittering profile and aromatic notes of black pepper, spice, florals and pine work in culminative service with all the ingredients to convey complexity as well as decadence.
In our opinion Carachino is an absolute triumph of a Winter Stout, and if you’re anywhere near as persuaded as we are, there are plenty of places to get your hands on some! Carachino is available at select Mad Squirrel tap rooms on draft and in cans from December.
Additionally, you can get Carachino via the Mad Squirrel website as a standalone item, or as part of the 2021 Winter Pastry Pack which is out Black Friday on special offer here.
Wishing all our coffee and beer drinkers happy and responsible drinking, Christmas and New Year!
Visit A Mad Squirrel Tap Room
Watford | St Albans | Amersham | High Wycombe | Berkhamsted | Chesham
Beans stay fresher for longer, and so your coffee should taste better, too. As soon as green coffee beans are roasted, they start to release CO2, which affects the taste. They will oxidise and slowly start to go 'stale' and have a flat taste after a while. When coffee is ground, there is a higher surface area which is exposed to oxygen and that will cause them to lose their freshness faster, so it's best to keep coffee beans whole as close to brewing as possible. Treat your coffee beans similarly to potatoes: store them in a dark, dry place. It's best they are kept in a container or the bag they come in to stop oxygen and moisture getting in.
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