Imperial Smoked Porter - Captain Lawrence Brewing Co.

Manoftyr

New York

4.78/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from 64oz growler into 22oz snifter.

Appearance-This is the blackest porter I've ever seen right off the bat and it pours with that slick motor oil consistency I usually associate with an RIS. A small head rises but quickly bubbles away.

Aroma-Smoke upfront of an almost peaty variety but it's by no means overwhelming, coffee and caramel undertones with a clean roastiness. No alcohol that I can smell.

Taste-Dark chocolatey malts upfront followed quickly by roasty, peaty smoke, as a reviewer before me put it this 'isn't bacon smoke' but has far more in common with the kind of smokiness you find in a peaty Scotch. Some coffee notes as well but they're an undercurrent, the big players are the chocolaty malts and the smoke which last clean and straight forward all the way to the end. After the finish the smoke leaves a nice smokey aftertaste, again, like a good peaty Scotch. Amazing, just jaw droppingly awesome.

Mouthfeel-Rich, syrupy, almost chewy with low carbonation; a perfect blanket for the peaty smoke.

Drinkability-Zero alcohol presence plus additively sip-inducing flavors make this dangerous on the drinkability scale.

Notes-Captain Lawrence was under the radar for me for awhile, none of their brews ever really 'wowed' me...until now. This beer is amazing a peat-lover and a dark malt lover's dream beer.

Serving type: growler

09-10-2010 22:34:09 | More by Manoftyr

kevinv

Virginia

4.83/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I can't thank Dave (cavedave) enough for a 64oz growler of this one. Poured into my New Belgium globe.

A - Pours a dark, dark black with mahogany hues around the edges. About a 1 finger mocha colored head that resides to the surface fairly quickly. A small amount of lacing remains. I hope this beer tastes as good as it looks.

S - SMOKE. The nose is truly exceptional with all of these big smoky aromas. It reminds me of sitting around a campfire. It smells like salty, cooked meats. While the smoke and salty meats dominate, there are undertones of bittersweet chocolate and roasted coffee.

T - The taste is akin to the smell. Big smoky and salty flavors up front. The chocolate comes through more on the taste than it did in the aromas. The smoke has a very clean taste to it. Only the slightest amount of alcohol comes through as the beer warms. Simply amazing.

M - Medium-high mouthfeel with a low carbonation, a perfect amount to let all of the flavors shine through. Nice creamy finish.

D - Very high drinkability. I personally love the smoky taste, but can see how it may be overwhelming to some. I would LOVE to have this beer available at all times.

Like another reviewer said, this beer is damn near perfect. Really glad that I got to try this one.

Serving type: growler

02-27-2011 01:43:16 | More by kevinv

jrallen34

Illinois

4.88/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

650 counter pressurized bottle from BierKraft, another huge thanks to hoppy...A dark black pour with about four fingers of head, falls pretty quickly. The head is a bright light tan, ok lacing...A super strong aroma of salty bacon and smoke, its awesome...The taste is equally amazing, the salted pork comes through strongly with smoke, but what sets this apart is the complexity brought about by the addition of some sweet chocolate, which just takes this too a whole new level. Unreal smooth chocolately finish. An unreal feel and super easy to drink.

I really hate to throw this term around, but this beer is almost perfect in every way. Get this beer.

Serving type: growler

11-11-2010 02:44:58 | More by jrallen34

AgentZero

Illinois

4.9/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Thanks to jrallen34 for popping this one open.

A - Solid black beer with a finger of tan foam that left a little bit of lace behind.

S - A great smoke smell on top of an awesome buttery and chocolatey malt smell. Truly great smelling beer with roast, smoke, malt, chocolate, awesome.

T - Taste is just fantastic. A great smoke taste on top of roasted malts and chocolate, some butter and just the perfect hints of dark fruit. Not sure how to improve on this one.

M - Fuller bodied with some good carbonation.

D - Can't believe this is 12%, love this beer and can't get enough. Just about perfect.

Serving type: growler

03-16-2011 05:15:47 | More by AgentZero