Barrel Aged People's Porter - Foothills Brewing Company

yourefragile

District of Columbia

1.73/5  rDev -55.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

On tap the night before BASC release. Unfortunately BASC kicked before we arrived so I ordered this instead; shame on me.

Tastes, smells, looks and feels thin. Plenty of watery bourbon throughout and some, eff, who cares. Not much of a porter presence, this is the written essence of three quarters of a pint being drain poured.

Serving type: on-tap

07-16-2011 11:44:59 | More by yourefragile

CBlack85

South Carolina

1.8/5  rDev -53.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5

Ont tap at Foothills the day of the BASC release.

I like the regular Peoples Porter so I figured I would give it a shot. WOW... and not in a good way.

The beer is a deep chocolate color with lots of ruby highlights. The thin tan head recedes almost immediately leaving behind no lacing whatsoever. The beer looks thin.

The smell is bourbon all the way. The bourbon smell is so strong there is almost no trace of the base beer in the aroma.

The taste is much the same as the smell, all bourbon all the way. Just an overwhelming bourbon presence. My wife and I both ordered one and she could only get through one or two sips before she could not take it anymore. The beer is thin and under carbonated. Hard to drink

Overall, I was completely turned off by the HUGE bourbon presence (and I like a good bourbon). Just poorly done. I am actually surprised because there are so many good reviews for this beer, and how well BASC is done. I will give them the benefit of the doubt and figure that this was a bad batch, maybe if I am feeling adventurous I will try this again someday and re-review.

They really missed the mark on this one...

Serving type: on-tap

07-17-2011 19:39:06 | More by CBlack85

ehammond1

California

2.3/5  rDev -40.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5

Bottle

Acquired via trade
Thanks, Beerness!

Very, very dark brown, nearly black, with a large, quickly forming, and very persistent brown head. This leaves thick chunks and ribbons of lace down the glass.

The aroma is probably the most redeeming aspect of this beer, as there isn't much here to write home about. There's mild roast and a little bit of chocolate, There's also quite a bit of mineral, even metallic character.

The flavor is below average. There is very little barrel character. If given this blind, I'd never guess this was a barrel-aged porter. There's very mild chocolate and roast, though there's also quite a bit of metal and minerals. Moderate bitterness, and not particularly drinkable.

Medium bodied with very high carbonation, which isn't appropriate for a beer of this style. Prickly, and about as bad of a mouthfeel as I can imagine for a barrel-aged porter. Infected?

Not a lot of redeeming qualities.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2012 03:06:17 | More by ehammond1

nickd717

California

2.45/5  rDev -36.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Bourbon barrel aged People’s Porter? More like Bourbon...um...uh...yeah, just bourbon. This tastes like bourbon. If I wanted bourbon, I’d just drink bourbon. Well I do like some bourbon, but not all bourbon if you want to call yourself a beer.

Anyway, the "beer" in question here is dark brown with caramel bourbon-like tones and a very minimal tan head.

The aroma is bourbon, bourbon, bourbon, oakiness, and roast. Not too bad actually.

The flavor is BOURBON, bourbon, bourbon, bourbon, roast, chocolate, oak, and more bourbon.

Medium-bodied and boozy with lower carbonation.

This has potential, but hey guys, ease off on that bourbon next time.

Serving type: bottle

06-24-2011 23:40:55 | More by nickd717

caber2615

Michigan

2.68/5  rDev -30.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

A- dark brown one finger white head

S- sweet, vanillia, bourbon

T- boozy, astringent, sweet

M- thin

O- first barrel aged porter I have had. It was ok. Good bourbon favors, but it took took much of the bite you get from a high alcohol bourbon. Being a 6% abv porter I did not expect the booziness.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 00:53:14 | More by caber2615

pschul4

Illinois

2.71/5  rDev -30.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 1.75 | overall: 2

A- Explosion of head (not in a good way) The bit of beer that is in my 22oz snifter is very dark brown/black. 4" of tan head sitting atop it though

S- Surprisingly faint on the nose. Hint of bourbon and roast but not much else there at all.

T- Hint of bourbon, hint of roast, lots of foam. Maybe some oxidation as well? Not a huge fan

M- Way too carbonated. Not digging this

O- Dissapointment

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 03:58:20 | More by pschul4

jmarsh123

Indiana

2.74/5  rDev -29.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 2.5

Pours dark brown/black with a lot (almost too much) of mocha colored head. Good retention and decent lacing.

Not picking up a ton on the nose. Some roast malt, sweet chocolate and a hint of bourbon.

Again not much in the flavor department either. A little roasted malt with just a touch of bourbon. There's a weird sweetness as well that overpowers everything, but it still finishes a little astringent. Almost tastes oxidized as well. Strange for a fresh bottle.

Mouthfeel is probably the downfall of this. Just too much carbonation that doesn't let the flavors shine.

Disappointed in this one. Beer itself is fine, but kind of bland. Being that it is a bourbon aged beer, I would expect much more so the scores are all a bit lower due to the expectation from the style.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2013 19:04:24 | More by jmarsh123

danwho

California

3.05/5  rDev -21.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Got this in trade from inlimbo77, thanks Bill. Poured from the bomber into a tulip. Dark, dark brown, creamy head, nice foam, minimal lace. Looks good so far.
Smells mostly, overwhelmingly bourbon, I really get nothing else on the nose. Too bad it's not more complex.
Mouthfeel is a little too thin for me, not really watery, just thin.

Taste is just way too bitter, too much bourbon, no vanilla or coffee notes picked up at all. Not very complex, too one dimensional for me. Easy to drink, just too bitter. Limited flavor of the roasted malts.

Maybe this would age and mellow out a little, become more complex. I would like to try the regular version as a comparison.
I think the barrel ruined this one.
Overall, this one is average at best for me.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2012 16:52:17 | More by danwho

Treebs

Illinois

3.15/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Split an imperial growler (32oz.) with a buddy. Poured into my Founders snifter.

A: Poured a dark chocolate with a nice 1 finger caramel head. Nice retention on the head with some splotchy lace on the drink's way down.

S: Wow, what up bourbon. It's hard to fight through the bourbon, but once I do I find some dark chocolate with some roasted biscuit malt.

T: The taste of the bourbon is even more pronounced than in the smell. Very sweet bourbon with dark chocolates and some light roast. Little bitter hops thrown in on the finish.

M: Medium bodied with a nice carbonation. Nice sweet chocolates left on the palate.

O: This guy was a bourbon assault. I like BA beers, but this guy just throws the bourbon all over the place and the other flavors take a back seat.

Serving type: growler

06-26-2011 13:56:50 | More by Treebs

ArrogantB

Colorado

3.15/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Bottle thanks to Netdigger2. I've had a fresh growler of People's Porter before and I liked it so I was interested to see how this turned out. Obviously it was very black and had a so-so head. The smell was boozy barrels. The the taste was completely dominated by the bourbon barrel to the point of hiding the porter completely. It did not taste like alcohol but I much preferred the regular people's porter.

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2012 17:23:02 | More by ArrogantB

Sean9689

Illinois

3.15/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to Patrick (kingkong) for this one!

A - Pours a dark brown color, mocha head, thin collar.

S - Overpowering bourbon and oak are right up front and dominate the rest of the beer. There's also some chocolate, light roast, and caramel in there as well. That said, it's just a bourbon bomb.

T - Similar to the nose, bourbon and wood. They let this beer sit in the barrels for too long, I'm assuming. Light chocolate, roast, and burnt sugars. Really though, a lot of bourbon and oak that kill it for the rest of the beer. Finishes the same...bourbon and wood.

M - Thin light body, light carbonation, creamy finish.

O - This beer was "meh" for me. The PVW barrels only made this beer one-dimensional...too much bourbon and wood, too thin body and just an average porter. Give me HF Everett or CL Smoked Porter any day of the week and twice on Sunday's over this beer. Pass.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2012 14:49:21 | More by Sean9689

tewaris

Minnesota

3.15/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Sent kindly by josefiak, thank Chris!

Pours a dark brown color with good clarity and a medium brown head. Wouldn't call it black or anything though, nor does it claim to be. While the text on the bottles talks about lots of things, all I smell is some tartness (not the infection kind, mind you! Just the dark beer kind). Then in the back end, some mixed notes. I might be wrong but I thought this beer was aged in some high end bourbon's barrels. Drinks more like plain oak, or maybe the barrels have been maxed out? Acidic, roasty and dark chocolaty with somewhat tannic finish that could be from roast but is most likely from wood. Overall drinks smooth and easy but I wouldn't call it remarkable. Medium body, medium-high carbonation for my tastes.

4, 3, 3, 4, 3

PS: Kickass artwork.

Serving type: bottle

10-31-2012 19:26:16 | More by tewaris

HopHead84

California

3.2/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

9/3/2011

Growler shared by Stawn, thanks!

A: Black with a big creamy light brown head. Pretty good retention and a little lacing.

S: Perfumy barrel phenols with pronounced vanilla and oak. There's a little brown sugar with a dash of green apple. Bourbon is really strong, accompanied by caramel and a touch of chocolate. Smells quite nice. 

T: Caramel and a little chocolate with oak. For the strength of the bourbon in the nose, it's really light in the flavor. I get oak, tannins, and astringency, but little bourbon.

M: Medium body with moderate carbonation. The mouthfeel is thin and watery.

Overall: Just okay. The nose the highlight. The flavor was lacking.

Serving type: growler

09-04-2011 15:18:46 | More by HopHead84

argock

Virginia

3.23/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22oz brown bomber into a Duvel tulip. No freshness date. Purchased at Peabody's Wine and Beer Merchants (Boone, NC) for $6.99.

A: Very dark brown with 1-finger beige head with decent retention and a few scattered lace spots.

S: Nice bourbon aroma with vanilla and oak with some coconut too. The base porter provides some musty dark malt aromas and not much else.

T: The flavor falls far short of the aroma with the bourbon character providing only a light kiss of flavor at the start with the rest of the beer tasting like a muddy dark beer. There is no roundness, only muddled flavor.

M: THe mouthfeel comes through with medium body and low carbonation.

O: A very disappointing beer. THe barrel ageing seems to muddle the flavor rather than add to it.

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2012 04:10:26 | More by argock

jeonseh

Indiana

3.23/5  rDev -16.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A - Dark chocolate brown with a small milk chocolate head that settled to foam

S - Dark chocolate, caramel, vanilla, and lots of butterscotch from the pappy barrel

T - Roasted chocolate and bitter coffee with light butterscotch. Slight alcoholic booze and oak near the finish. The base beer doesn't seem to stand up to the barrel well which gives it an astringent and boozy bite

M - Medium body with a roasted presence. Slight oak tingle near the finish to it

O - Solid porter but the beer just can't fully stand up to the barrel. It smells great but there is just too much booze and bite in the flavor

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 13:20:52 | More by jeonseh

Adrianized

Connecticut

3.25/5  rDev -16.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Loud PSST! when I pop the cap. Pours essentially black, but a little thin. Maybe a very dark brown. 2 finger tan head settles down to 1/2 finger.

First I get is a hit of bourbon and nuttiness. This is followed by sweet toffee and roasted malts. The bourbon I initially got actually seems to disappear. There's some cured meat/rauchbier thing going on as well.

Lot's of oak and a nice balanced amount of bourbon flavor. Flavor follows aroma with nuts, roasted malt, cured meat, and wood. Finishes with very mild bitterness.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with appropriate carbonation.

Overall, People's Porter is a solid porter, and that being said... I think the original was better. I'm just getting this odd rauchbeir-like quality that I'm not liking.

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2012 04:39:25 | More by Adrianized

brstls4drmrs

North Carolina

3.3/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pours a dark brown, coffee like color with a 1/2" tan head. Good lacing with it as well.

S - Roasty, nutty, malts with hints of bourbon and a splash of coffee and a little dark chocolate. The roastness in here reminds be of a fresh can of nuts.

T - Bourbon and roasty nuts. Not much else for me.

M - Felt lightly carbonated and thin with only a slight bitterness. A little disappointing for me.

O - Not bad. Had it on tap months ago and I remember it better than this. Could be the batch.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2012 02:39:57 | More by brstls4drmrs

Etan

Illinois

3.3/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

22oz bottle, courtesy of Fortsambo, into a snifter.

A: Pours a dark brown with a gigantic light tan head (almost too much).

S: Really nice bourbon and oak, maple, vanilla, faint cocoa and caramel.

T: Big wash of oak and mild liquor, faded roasted grain and chocolate behind. More oak and bitter tannins from the barrel in the finish. A bit smoky, even.

M: Relatively high carbonation, medium-to-thick body.

O: I'm getting tired of all these BA porters that end up dominated by the barrel, washed out and unpleasant. This isn't the worst offender I've tried, and I give it points for the aroma, but it certainly wasn't very good.

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2012 14:56:30 | More by Etan

thegodfather2701

North Carolina

3.4/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A-Pours nearly black with a tan head that dissipates quickly and leaves no lacing behind.

S-Bourbon, coffee, alcohol, coconut, and more bourbon.

T-Very similar to the nose with bourbon completely dominating the flavor profile. There was some chocolate, coffee, coconut, and wood in the mix, but the bourbon overwhelmed everything. It was no where near as tasty as the regular People's Porter in my opinion.

M-super thin for the style.

D-The overwhelming bourbon flavor and thin mouthfeel made this a one and done for me.

Overall, this is average at best in my opinion. I absolutely love People's Porter and was excited about drinking this, but it had way too much bourbon and was way too thin.

Serving type: on-tap

04-01-2012 02:52:31 | More by thegodfather2701

Freethyhops

Alabama

3.48/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

on tap at the BA Sexual Chocolate release part

a- pours a dark brown that has big transluscent brown tones when held to light. small cream colored head of the pour.

s- rich, sweet dark malts. a bit of caramel, wood, and a bit of tartness mixing with some fruity yeast esters. very light bourbon.

t- sweet malts up front; chocolate, caramel, light roasted. light bitterness balances the sweet malts. the tartness from the nose is even stronger here. I'm assuming it's tannins from the wood causing this. it's a nice complexity but it really doesn't hit my palate right. the bourbon is really light in this one.

m- medium-light bodied. moderate carbonation aides the fullness of this one. no alchohol warming.

d- good drinkability in the technical sense but the barrel really didn't do anything to improve this one. I stuck to the other options after one pour of this one. nice to see what happens when a lower ABV ale is thrown in some barrels.

Serving type: on-tap

09-29-2010 16:18:57 | More by Freethyhops

kbutler1

Minnesota

3.48/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Growler. Pours a dark brown color with a big mocha tan head. Rich dark chocolate with a big handful of bourbon notes. Some roast as well. Medium/light mouthfeel, lighter than expected and desired given the strong aroma and flavor. Roasted coffee and bourbon notes upfront with a bitter dark chocolate back end. Lingering booze flavor but no burn of alcohol. Overall, I enjoyed this but wish the mouthfeel was a little heavier. The bourbon notes may be offputting to some.

Serving type: growler

09-29-2011 12:17:34 | More by kbutler1

mgbickel

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

On tap at the brewery. Served in a standard pint glass.

I was pretty pumped to find a BBA beer while on our brief visit to this brewery. The bartender served this with very little head. The body is dark brown and crystal clear (or as best as I can tell in that lighting).

The nose has tons and tons of bourbon. Wow...smells like my wife will have to drive to the hotel. Roasted malts and coffee play background roles.

As the nose indicates, this is a bourbon bomb. There is something off about it though...almost like bourbon was added to this rather than the beer aging in barrels.

The mouthfeel is by far the weakest link in this offering. Watery with light carbonation. I think the MF really takes away from the other characters of this beer.

Man...this one has potential, but the body, and to a lesser extent, taste, needs some work. Worth the tick I guess, but I would not recommend...

Serving type: on-tap

10-27-2011 14:04:23 | More by mgbickel

Chaney

District of Columbia

3.53/5  rDev -9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I picked this up from Foothills back in March.

Served in a Troegs Mad Elf snifter.

A: I started to pour this, but I got scared. The foam went up WAY above the actual liquid. The mocha head was quite a bit more than substantial.

S: Buttery bourbon, with quite the chocolate profile. Butter and then some!

T: Lots of chocolate notes. As a matter of fact, I got lots of cocoa notes. The bourbon was buttery and then some.

M: Creamy and with a lot of lacing here.

O: I liked it, but I liked the base beer better.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2012 06:34:55 | More by Chaney

maximum12

Minnesota

3.58/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to mjmadden for a big honkin' growler of this beer, which I couldn't have been more jazzed to pop open. Plus, I get a cool new growler to add to our collection.

Pours Jet-Black, with a nice dizzle of foam around the edges to let us know it's survived the journey from the Carolinas with carbonation intact. Bourbon erupts from the growler once we finally pry it from its cocoon of electrical tape, but seems to exhaust itself quickly, lying back into a subdued aura of boozy, malty bourbon.

People's Porter is one of those brews that I would have liked to taste the base beer alongside the barreled-up version, because I suspect the barrel might not have added a lot to the experience. The bourbon is upfront, but quiet, subtle, more of a lick of vanilla than anything else. The porter is nicely roasted with a surprisingly bitter ending kick, which I'd like to attribute to the hops, or perhaps the roast, honestly, I couldn't tell, just a tail of bitterness. Only had one glass from the growler, but would have liked another to do a more thorough analsysi (yes, that's my story & I'm sticking to it).

Good brew. Not up to the gold standard to barrel aged porters (Williamsberg) but I'd be happy to find myself staring into the dark of a People's Porter any day.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2010 02:18:20 | More by maximum12

GameChicken

North Carolina

3.63/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Out of a 22oz bottle, but I also had it on draft and liked it better that way.

S - Nice lowkey bourbon smell with hints of chocolate and malt.

T - A bit of bourbon upfront followed by a traditional porter beer. Very easy drinking for a barrel aged beer. Not too pricey either.

M - Smooth, moderate carb. Subtle booze, but easy drinking.

O - Surprisingly easy drinking barrel aged beer. ABV is not too high, and this could be a nice go to barrel aged beer if it was produced more. Like this beer alot.

Serving type: bottle

03-31-2012 01:12:33 | More by GameChicken