Not every beer needs to be sessionable. Some beers are built for a cold evening, a slow pour, and a little ceremony, and IronBark Hill's Black Forest Stout is exactly that. It's one of the most talked-about beers in our range, a Gold Medal winner, and the one people ask about most when they find out it's between batches.
It's also the kind of beer that's easy to explain in one sentence: it tastes like Black Forest cake. That's not a marketing line. It's what happens when you combine the right malts, fresh pureed cherries, and real dark chocolate in the same fermentation vessel.
What Goes Into It
Most stouts get their chocolate and coffee character from roasted malts alone, the grain itself, kilned dark enough to produce those flavours without any actual cocoa involved. IronBark Hill starts there: English hops, single origin Australian Ale malt, chocolate malt, and roasted barley form the base. That foundation gives you the deep brown-black colour, the roasted bitterness, and the dry finish you'd expect from a quality stout.
Then we do something different. Late in fermentation, fresh pureed cherries and real dark chocolate go into the tank.
This matters because timing is everything in brewing. Adding fruit or adjuncts too early can strip out delicate aromatics during fermentation. Added late, the cherries and chocolate have less time to ferment away, their flavour and aroma stay in the finished beer. The result is unmistakable: a stout that genuinely smells and tastes of Black Forest cake, not in a synthetic way, but in the way a good dessert does. Rich cherry fruit, dark chocolate bitterness, and a smooth roasted body that holds it all together.
The Awards
The Black Forest Stout won Gold at the 2023 Australian Independent Beer Awards, one of the most respected competitions in Australian craft brewing, alongside a Silver Medal at the same year's Sydney Royal Beer & Cider Show. These aren't participation trophies. The AIBA in particular draws hundreds of entries across every style category, judged blind by experienced industry professionals.
For a small brewery in the Hunter Valley to take gold in a national competition against entries from across the country is a genuine achievement, and it reflects what we've been doing at IronBark Hill since the beginning: brewing to a standard, not to a formula.
How to Drink It
Stouts are often served too cold, which mutes everything you're trying to taste. The Black Forest Stout is best at around 10–12°C, colder than room temperature, warmer than a standard lager serve. Pull it from the fridge 10 minutes before you drink it, or let it sit in a glass for a minute or two.
Pour it slowly down the side of the glass to preserve the carbonation and let the head form naturally. That dense, tan head isn't just aesthetic, it carries a significant amount of aroma, and aroma is where this beer announces itself. If you're in a rush, you're missing half the experience.
What to Eat Alongside It
The flavour profile of the Black Forest Stout, cherry, dark chocolate, roasted malt, gives you a lot of food pairing options. Winter food in particular works well:
- Slow-cooked beef or lamb the roasted bitterness of the stout cuts through rich braised meat the way a red wine would. A slow-cooked lamb shoulder with the Black Forest Stout alongside is a very good winter meal.
- Dark chocolate desserts a chocolate tart, brownie, or mousse doubles down on the chocolate character in the beer. They enhance each other rather than competing.
- Aged hard cheeses a sharp cheddar or a semi-hard washed rind brings out the savoury depth underneath the fruit and chocolate. It's a more unexpected pairing but a rewarding one.
- Smoked or grilled meats BBQ pork ribs, smoked brisket, anything with char. The roasted malt notes in the beer have a natural affinity with smoke flavour from the grill.
When Is It Back?
The Black Forest Stout is a seasonal release. We brew it in batches, and when it sells out, it's gone until the next brew. It's currently between batches, but a new run is coming. The seasonal nature is part of what makes it special: it's not a beer that's always there. When it lands, people who know about it move quickly.
If you want to know the moment it's back in stock, the best way is to follow IronBark Hill on Instagram or check the website at pdwines.com.au.
In the meantime, the full IronBark Hill range, including the American Pale Ale, Hop Circus IPA, and Hazy Train, is available online and at the brewery cellar door at 694 Hermitage Rd, Pokolbin. We're open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm.
