Mutantis Brewery Vanilla Stout

Mutantis Brewery and Bottle Shop Vanilla Stout

Gluten Free Vanilla Stout

This is a very exciting beer for me. When I first became gluten free, getting my hands on a gluten free Vanilla Stout was an unrealistic fantasy. It simply did not exist. Fast forward to today, and not only do we have gluten free stouts on the market, but I actually expect them to be amazing! Because they usually are.

Today I’m pouring the Mutantis Brewery Vanilla Stout, which is brewed in a dedicated gluten free space in Portland. Mutantis marks Portland’s third dedicated gluten free brewery, alongside veterans Ground Breaker Brewing and Moonshrimp Brewing. 

The Vanilla Stout is brewed on malted rice, malted millet, and roasted buckwheat. It also includes vanilla beans, as you might assume. The 5.7% ABV is moderate and the 20 IBU is light, so I’m not expecting this to be as bitter as I’m expecting it to be creamy.

Feast your eyes on this Vanilla Stout’s beer pour below. Then I’ll get into the aroma and taste. Stay tuned until the end of this review to read up on a few other Mutantis Brewery & Bottle Shop creations. To this day, I have yet to be disappointed by any style to leave that brewery.

The Taste Test

Mutantis Brewery Vanilla Stout

This gluten free Vanilla Stout pours SO dark. Jet black and completely opaque. I can see absolutely no light of any kind through this stout. The head is nice, but I somewhat forced it. I am super excited to taste this black beauty.

First, let’s talk aroma. Vanilla is prominent, supported by notes of roasty chocolate. The flavor is even heavier in vanilla, and absolutely loaded with chocolate. This stout has more roast character, and less coffee bitterness than most others. 

When the Vanilla Stout first reaches your lips, you are greeted with flavors of chocolate and roasty malt. Texture and body hit next. The body is full, but isn’t too thick. It IS creamy AF though. A bit sweet, and overall very smooth. By the end of the palate, you’re left with a light dark chocolate like bitterness on the tongue and silky smooth coating throughout the mouth.

The vanilla smooths this stout out a lot, and it even adds to the perception of alcohol content for me. Its silkiness makes it a bit more easy drinking than the average stout. If I’m being honest, I don’t notice much hop flavor at all, just tons of roasty malt. 

I think it’s worth noting that this gluten free stout manages to be a roast bomb—without it being so dark that it tastes burnt and sharp. That quality does have its place, but is not present in this Mutantis Brewery Vanilla Stout. The roast actually balances out the sweetness quite a bit. I think the sweetness would build more without the density of the malt character.

Now, it’s worth noting that Mutantis Brewery is constantly rotating gluten free beer styles and modifying their recipes, but if you ever see anything resembling this low IBU Vanilla Stout, grab it, because I think you’re going to love it. It’s unique, as are all of the brews from Mutantis Brewery honestly. 

This isn’t the first review I’ve done for Mutantis’s experimental beers. Check out a few others I published recently…all 100% gluten free.

Extra Dry IPA

Blueberry Wit

Deep Blonde Ale

P.S. Like what I do for the gluten free beer community? Consider buying me a beer for my efforts! ;)