Vermont’s Magic Hat is one of the Northeast’s more successful craft brewers, and one of the best at penetrating the age 21-34 market, thanks to their light, apricot-tinged #9.

Personally, I’ve always found them a bit cutesy and over-precious, and sometimes I think their marketing ability eclipsed their beer in quality. This put them off my radar screen for a while. But a good beer reviewer never closes doors. I had the bartender dispense me out a pint of Matty O’Connor’s Irish Stout.

This is a fantastic beer. It’s inky black, as an Irish stout is supposed to be, with a complex roast malt flavor- a bit of coffee, maybe a touch of vanilla, and a hearty nuttiness. O’Connor’s also avoids the pitfall of being too porterlike, carrying the flavor through with the slightly metallic dryness one expects from a good example of the style.

The head was a bit more brown and less persistent than I’m used to, but who cares? Magic Hat’s latest Irish stout will be a session beer of mine for as long as I can find it on draft. Even if visiting their website is like watching Monty Python on acid.

-Mark