Black n Tan vs. Half n Half
Maybe it's because I spent my college years in PA, in the early 90's drinking Yuengling Black n Tan but... in my mind a Black & Tan refers to a dark beer (probably any porter\stout) and a light coloured beer (probably any pale ale or lager) mixed, whereas a Half & Half refers to a a dark beer (usually a Guinness) and a lighter coloured beer (usually a Harp to keep it all Irish) separated.
Am I anal? Are they really the same thing? Any thoughts either way? Anyone really care, when the price of petrol keeps rising?!!
(-;
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It's a good question, but
It's a good question, but certainly not one I'm qualified to answer. I've never actually ordered a black and tan (or a half and half for that matter) and never really had the desire to. I guess before I got into beer it just seemed to complex and expensive to bother and after I got into beer, it just seemed like it would ruin the beer! Oh well.
RE: It's a good question, but
I can understand your hesitation on ordering a half & half, before you got into beer. Don't think it is expensive (I find it's the same cost as just ordering a Guinness), but there is a certain amount of... (what's the word i want?).. theatrics? behind it. Depending on the bar, you may get a bartender that isn't very good at floating the two beers, and other customer may look at you like, "what the e'll is he drinking?!". Think it would be off-putting to a newbie. (On the flip side, I can also see what the other person was saying, that it could be an interesting "gateway" for a newbie into craft beers. It could "intice" a "Bud" drinker into trying a Harp or Guinness, thus opening the door.)
I don't really understand the thought process as to why a Half & Half will "ruin the beer" though. I'd like to hear why you feel that way, if you care to share. (I realize it may just be a personal preference, and this whole discussion is somewhat silly anyway.).
From my point of view a Half & Half can just give you a different experience. You're drinking Guinness… then you reach that point where it mixes and you hit the slightly separate mouthfeel\taste of the Harp. A bit of a novelty, yes, but an interesting experiment and a distinct beer drinking experience if one is in the mood for it. I would think, you being a beer lover, would at least try it once to have that palate reference, and so am curious why "you've never had the desire".
But going back to my original question, I guess, I was just trying to find out whether there is any difference in anyone's mind (other than me) between a Half & Half (floating Guinness on Harp), and a Black & Tan (which I think of as more of a mixture or blending of two beers, one light and one dark… no floating… they are mixed.). From the comments thus far, there doesn't seem to be a distinction between the two in anyone else's mind, so maybe it's just me… or maybe it's a regional thing…
-BW
- Lastly, with that definition above, I wonder if a Porter could actually be a category of a Black & Tan (or vice-versa). As noted on CBR, the original Porter was a mixture of several different beer types.
I guess I didn't read your
I guess I didn't read your original post very well. I didn't realize you were saying that black and tans were mixed. The one and only time I have ever seen a mixed Black and Tan was seeing Yuengling's bottled black and tan where it's impossible to float the beer in the bottle (didn't have the heart to try it. I had their lager and it was awful). Other than that, I've had Black and Tans in a number of states, all separated, all with stout on top and a lighter beer on bottom, hence the name "black and tan." From my viewpoint, if they were mixed you would have to call the drink something like "mud" instead of black and tan. I think Greg's usual aversion to this (and correct me if I'm wrong Greg, I seem to be bad at guessing reasons behind your taste, regardless of if Jeff agrees with me) is he doesn't like mixing beers because that was not the intended way to experience them. I say, why not explore other experiences; isn't that the same mentality that craft brewers employ themselves? Not to mention the case that Guinness make both Guinness and Harp, and often advocates Black and Tans (They even had a 12 foot poster for them around Halloween in my local Safeway).
Original Porters were a mixture of three beers (I think it was 3), so technically that wasn't experiencing any of those beers as intended either. They came together to create something else that was also awesome.
Just another couple cents,
-JDZJ
Tempe, AZ
I've never even encountered
I've never even encountered a half n half, but black and tans made with Guinness and Newcastle were part of what lured me to craft beer. There was a craft brewery that made a really good one too. For me at the time, whose palate wasn't quite accustomed to the taste, the advantage was that I got to drink half of a stout and half of a brown ale. By the time that I got tired of the stout, there was the refreshing brown ale to wash all of the roastiness out of my mouth ( My palate has since toooootally changed). Black and tans are only a good thing if they're properly separated, otherwise it's just an odd tasting porter. I've only recently encountered putting a light beer in instead of a brown ale, and that sounds crazy to me, probably because since my palate has acclimated to the stronger tastes of many beers, black and tans are very tame to what they used to taste, and a pale ale makes it even tamer. Also, brown ales match better ( to me I mean, this is all opinion ) because they have some of their own caramelly roasty flavor (at least a good one) to go with the stout. Just my two cents on black and tans...but half and halfs are completely new to me.
-JDZJ
Tempe, AZ