Reviewed: Jun. 4, 2008

I've made this cheesecake twice, both times with stellar results. The first time I didn't make any changes to the ingredients, and followed the instructions to the letter. It was exceedingly good. The texture was silky and crack free, the flavor was a mature chocolate with subtle stout undertones. (NOTE: When I was pouring the batter into my springform, I was nervous because it seemed too thin to set. It wasn't! Actually, I think that's why it was so silky smooth.) The second time I made the recipe, I added an extra 1/4 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder to the crust, and instead of Guinness I subbed Young's Double Chocolate Stout (a heady English Stout in a purple bottle/can that can be found in the Microbrew section of most liquor stores). What a winner! The extra cocoa powder and the Young's achieved the complex bittersweet flavor I had been looking for. This is a Five Star recipe with no changes, and (in my opinion)MORE than five with heavier stout.

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Reviewer:

TheInfamousNicoletta

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

Reviewed: Aug. 17, 2008

This is delicious! I threw my mom a birthday party and was looking for something a little different to make for dessert, and this seemed perfect. Every person at the party loved it. It is very rich, and very chocolatey, but to a true chocolate-lover, it is not too heavy. I followed the recipe exactly, and I will make it again, and again, and again.

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kmilfaz

Cooking Level: Expert

Reviewed: Jan. 23, 2009

I love chesse cake

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TJ Knight

Reviewed: Mar. 13, 2009

I have to say I've never heard of this, as cheesecake wasn't really common in Eire, but it came out good and I stuffed myself full without sharing!

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remember the harp

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Orangevale, California, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 14, 2009

First, let me say how annoying it is to me to read reviews that give a poor rating when the reviewer doesn't follow the recipe! I followed the recipe EXACTLY, and this is without a doubt one of the most heavenly chocolate cheesecakes I've ever made. Just remember, the crust calls for chocolate cookies crumbs--not OREO cookie crumbs. So the butter to crumb ratio is just fine. I used chocolate graham cookie crumbs. It is very important to not leave out the heavy cream when melting the chocolate. The cream makes the chocolate into a nice, thick ganache. Eliminating the cream would result in a much thinner batter. My batter before cooking was a bit thinner than some cheesecakes I've made, but not significantly so. I was expecting it to be more runny based upon reviews that I had read. I did cook it for about 5 minutes longer because my oven runs a little cooler. The recommendation to wrap the pan in foil before submerging it in water was key--if you've never done a submerged waterbath and didn't know to wrap the pan, I can see where that would cause poor results. I took this to a St. Patrick's Day party and everyone went nuts--it was completely devoured! I'll be making this again, for sure.

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Reviewer:

Anne Z.

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Street, Maryland, USA

Living In: Mooresville, North Carolina, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 17, 2009

This cheesecake is awesome! I followed the recipe...used chocolate graham cracker crumbs instead of cookies. It got rave reviews from everyone in the office. It tasted like something you would find at cheescake factory....really....that good!

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Reviewer:

lucky

Reviewed: Mar. 18, 2009

Made this for a get-together last night. Followed recipe as is. Everyone loved it!! Will be making this again very soon.

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Reviewer:

Squashes

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Cody, Wyoming, USA

Living In: Rock Springs, Wyoming, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 19, 2009

This was my first spring-form cheesecake attempt so I was nervous to begin with. It's pretty straight forward but I will admit that the 'batter' appeared very runny. After cooking it 45 and then letting it sit 45 I put it in the fridge as the recipe said. After 4 hours, I cut a piece and noted that the center did not appear to be fully cooked. Needless to say I was really disappointed. But, and this is important I think, my fridge was full and I'm sure the air circulation wasn't ideal. I left it overnight and by the morning everything had firmed up well. My guests for St. Patrick's Day tried it and loved it (granted they'd had a few). I think it's an amazing recipe and can't wait to try it again.

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Bentle

Reviewed: Mar. 24, 2009

I have made this recipe twice now and it is the best dessert I've ever had! It sets up to be more mousse-like than a typical cheesecake and you must chill it at least 3 hours to set. I couldn't wait and cut into it early and was afraid that it would stay that soft but the next morning it was perfect. I was worried about that the first time as well because the center stayed jiggly even after turning off the oven and letting it cool. I use chocolate graham crackers for the crust and don't bother with the cocoa. I also cook it at 350 for 60 minutes then shut off the oven and leave it in for another 45 minutes. I will make this again and again.

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Reviewer:

damhnade

Reviewed: Mar. 28, 2009

Absolutely awesome! A great treat for my beer loving boyfriend. I used 1 1/2 cups of chocolate graham crackers instead of the 1 cup of chocolate cookies. Used a little more butter in the crust because of the additional crumbs. Also used 1/2 teaspoon of coco instead of 1/4 teaspoon. In the filling I used an additional teaspoon of vanilla (3 total). The end result was awesome! The beer is subtle but definitely present in the flavor. This allowed me to enjoy it as well as my boyfriend!

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