Smoked Porter - Chipotle - Stone Brewing Co.

chainsawhutch

California

1.15/5  rDev -70.2%
look: 4 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

A - dark coffee with a white, slightly tanned, two finger head that stuck around.

S - sour, off-hay like.

T - the taste began with a water nose. I tasted nothing else but water. This was followed by a burning sensation in the my throat. No spice, just burn. The burn was something similar to swallowing pepper spray. The finish was dirty and pestered my palate for quite some time. As Ralph from The Simpsons said, "It tastes like burning".

M - far too watery for an acceptable Porter .

D - I think I've made my point.

Serving type: cask

11-05-2009 23:32:14 | More by chainsawhutch

Floydster

California

1.65/5  rDev -57.3%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1

Pint at Naja's Place

One of the worst beers I have had this summer

The whole spicy and dark beer thing just does not work

Got to really be in the mood or just have an odd taste preference to like this one

It tastes normal, then all of sudden there is a sour acidic taste like a jalapeno or something

Blah

Even the bartender said it was bad, but I tried it anyways

Stay away by all means

Serving type: cask

09-06-2007 05:15:04 | More by Floydster

cpetrone84

Pennsylvania

2.38/5  rDev -38.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Had on tap at the Stone Total Tap Takeover

A-pours a dark cola brown looking color with some red edges and a dark tan colored head.

S-the nose is a blend of spicy pepper and roasted malts. there are hints of coffee rind and a touch of dry bakers chocolate.

T-chipotle and chocolate do not make a good mix in my mind. each flavor is assertive and stands alone. poor integration of these two flavors then give way to a very roasty malt finish.

M-thinner body with a creamy teture. the spice burns the back of the throat to make it hard to enjoy with a slightly dry finish.

D-this has an interesting array of flavors that to me don't taste good togther. they stand alone and lack integration. the finish is rather harsh and makes it hard to drink.

Serving type: on-tap

01-21-2011 18:52:42 | More by cpetrone84

beerisfuel

California

2.4/5  rDev -37.8%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

I'm shocked this pulled an award at the beer fest. Nice beer but NO peppers. Contains some good smoke, but its a smoked porter! Takes a long time to open up with peppers, and my grandma likes her morning eggs with more spicy than this. Might just be me, but a mediocre beer.
Na zdrowie

Serving type: growler

12-05-2010 07:00:14 | More by beerisfuel

Reaper16

Alabama

2.53/5  rDev -34.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

served on-tap @ The Foundry, Kansas City, MO, into a nonic pint

Pours a nice, roasty-looking deep brown. Plenty of red and toffee tones when held to light. A nice, tight light khaki head of about 1.25 fingers in size forms, and decides to stick around for awhile. Nice looking beer.

Unfortunately, the beer is blase on the nose. You get mostly smokiness; a muted liquid smoke component. There's a bit of brown malt aroma, but that's it. Poor smoke and not at all anything interesting going on beneath the smoke.

The positives about this beer: the Chipotle pepper heat is tasty and not too strong. The negatives about this beer: everything else. The smoke taste is muted and bland. The real criminal is the underlying porter. This was ostensibly a porter that has had smoke and pepper incorporated into it. The base beer is awful: weak, boring. It's like a slightly roastier brown ale, only diluted.

The mouthfeel is also terrible. It's way too thin. In fact, I'd describe it as straight-up watery. It causes the beer to fall off a cliff during the midpalate. What flavor there is in this beer disappears because of the watery body.

Overall, this is an unimpressive porter. Weak, muted flavors. It's just not well-brewed. This is a strange failure for a brewery that I often give high scores to.

Serving type: on-tap

05-29-2011 02:50:29 | More by Reaper16

Eriktheipaman

Virginia

2.58/5  rDev -33.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Poured a hazy black with tan head.

The smell was spicy with a little smokey roast on the back. A pretty damn good smell.

The first sip was pretty great and impressive. A much heavier hotness than expected as well and wayyy more smoke taste than the usual version. Now after one sip this beer went south. It was much to hot where as it would have given me heart burn and the smokiness was over powering. I know Stone goes for "Xtreme" beers but this is unbalanced and too much. I would still love to try the vanilla though.

From the other reviews I didn't see many people describing the intensity I tasted so it's possible it was just an off cask.

Serving type: cask

05-23-2011 04:54:29 | More by Eriktheipaman

brystmar

New York

2.58/5  rDev -33.2%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12oz bottle opened alongside the vanilla. Pour is almost as pretty as the vanilla, though the head is less fluffy and full. Body still looks a bit thin.

Smells like cardboard again. Hello oxidization! Peppers in the back, but man is it unpleasant. Taste follows suit: cardboard and more cardboard before chipotle peppers finish things off. Body is too thin and overcarbed again. Bad, bad, bad. Avoid!

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2012 00:17:21 | More by brystmar

TheDudeRules

Minnesota

2.63/5  rDev -31.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Served in a tulip glass.

* I swear a few times in here, please don't let the kiddies read*

Pours a very dark brown with a touch of off white head. Chipotle smoked beer, mmm. Sounds so good when it hits your lips. Um wait. Where is the smoked num num? There is nothing on the nose other than roast and a bit of chocolate. Well naturally it must be in the taste. Wrong! WTF? I chastised Stone before on the vanilla version tasting like cheap shit vanilla extract. I figured there would at least be something of that nature here. Hell no. I've been duped yet again. Fuck off Greg Koch and Stone. You make awful beer and you've fucked me over too many times.

Serving type: on-tap

05-30-2011 06:25:54 | More by TheDudeRules

zaphodchak

Virginia

2.68/5  rDev -30.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Deep brown, tinged with red, minimal offwhite head.

Smells and tastes kinda like red pepper flakes and cigarettes. I had much higher hopes. I've had pepper/chille done better, and smoke done much better. I don't really like it.

Feel is decent if a bit artificial.

Man, I had higher hopes, not to set the bar too high. This ended up being really underwhelming.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 00:39:25 | More by zaphodchak

Fatehunter

Oregon

2.78/5  rDev -28%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured a thin head on a black body.
The aroma is roasted malt with a quick hit of chipotle pepper smoke at the end.
The taste gets lost between the smoke and chili, neither which is overpowering. It's a bit watery with a pepper taste. The chipotle comes back at the end for a warm finish.
The texture is crisp with moderate carbonation.
I like chili beers, but this just didn't mix well together.

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2013 04:18:03 | More by Fatehunter

mactrail

California

2.8/5  rDev -27.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

My favorite salsas have chipotle peppers, so I had to give it a try. Dark brown in the glass. Modest foam with virtually no lacing.

The chile taste is actually quite nice. It's the campfire charred bitterness that takes away any pleasure. I don't remember the regular smoked version being so sourishly burnt. It gets more hot after sipping awhile, enough so that I don't want to sip anymore. Not hint of malty sweetness, which might have done this some good.

It doesn't take long before this totally wears out its welcome. Hot, dirty, extremely dry, and bitter in unrelieved rotation. Interesting for a taste, but not drinkable. From the 12 oz bottle.

Serving type: bottle

08-16-2012 06:07:12 | More by mactrail

pkalix

California

2.95/5  rDev -23.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

had the vanilla. love peppers, although not a huge fan of chipotles. vanilla and chipotle tasted the same. i got no 'heat', no pepper flavor or smell. the smell is BAND AIDS, just like the vanilla. does anyone know why? ever chewed on a band aid?- long story. or maybe just a sick one. but i dont find these beers pleasing. and it tastes like BAND AIDS, too. looked beautiful with the spotty lacing and rich dark color, but just doesnt do it for me.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2012 04:01:43 | More by pkalix

opwog

Minnesota

3/5  rDev -22.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Now playing: Neutral Milk Hotel - Holland, 1945

I am not even going to break this one down, as I had this on cask and even the bartender said that something had gone crazy (not necessarily in a good way) with this particular one. It was over carbonated and had an insane amount of pepper in it. After a couple of sips and finally a good gulp, the back of my throuat was sizzling like the urban legend of the kid who ate pop rocks and coke. They vouched that a previous keg was not so peppery, but I don't think that I would care for this combination any ways. I had the brandy barrel aged version of ths smoked porter and that sweetness with the smoke is a much more logical combination to me.

Serving type: cask

08-09-2008 09:10:39 | More by opwog

BeerBuckeye

Ohio

3/5  rDev -22.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Had on cask at Blue Palms Brewhouse in Hollywood, reviewed from notes.

A - Pours a deep brown with large off-white head that lingers and leaves a lot of lacing.

S - A bit subdued, mostly smokey--like the smell of a recently used charcoal grill. Some notes of chocolate and the chipotle are present, but not prominent

T - Very smokey taste, burnt coffee and chocolate before fading into that chipotle spicyness. You can't taste the chipotle so much as feel it. It's interesting to say the least.

M - Not great, the spicyness of the beer really throws off everything, as you can't fully enjoy any type of fullness in the beer because your mouth starts to tingle.

Overall - An interesting attempt to introduce something new to brewing, but I wasn't really buyin'

Serving type: cask

06-29-2011 16:21:37 | More by BeerBuckeye

OneDropSoup

Pennsylvania

3.03/5  rDev -21.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a shaker pint: Black body with just the faintest chestnut highlights under a finger of lumpy mocha head that sticks around for a while.

From the smell I get dark chocolate, a little peaty smokiness, a little pepper heat. Like bacon & chile with chocolate, flavors that go really well together. Seems to dissipate quickly as the head drops, leaving behind a dull "European hop" kind of aroma.

Hmm, flavor doesn't seem to be delivering on the aroma's initial promise, either: Dark roast malt that seems to be *just* roast flavor, without the nice caramel, chocolate, & coffee that usually accompany the roast. Closer to burnt toast, just charred bitterness. The chiles bring some heat to the aftertaste without providing much flavor. Really feels kind of empty, to be honest: just roast & heat without any of the good stuff that usually goes along with them. I'm actually drinking it fairly fast because I keep going back looking for more flavor, like I'd missed it. A little cocoa emerges, but not much.

Medium-bodied, with an astringency during the drinking & then a mild spicy heat & acidity in the aftertaste. Not bad, but again it should come as a partner to other good stuff that's lacking.

Gotta say, I'm a little disappointed in this. Started off good in the smell, but even that didn't last, & seemed to carry the challenging parts of the flavor components without the reward. So abrasive in some ways, flat in others.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 14:50:37 | More by OneDropSoup

ThePaleRider

California

3.15/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A - Coffee colored with a thin head that completely disappeared after a few seconds.

S - Roasted malts, spice that tingles the nose, coffee aromas, a little bit of cocoa.

T - A little bit of spice up front followed by the smoked porter. Roasted malts with a little bit of nut in there. Not quite as spicy as I was hoping for.

M - Smooth porter with little to no carbonation present. A tingle from the peppers, but that's about it.

O - I think I'd rather just have the smoked porter. The peppers don't add enough flavor or heat to really be worth it to me.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 03:58:55 | More by ThePaleRider

circus_cat

Virginia

3.18/5  rDev -17.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Four fingers of light khaki, marshmallowy head leaving pretty nice lacing. Inviting black body with ruby hues in the light.

S: I'm getting some jalapeño heat along with a LOT of smokiness...it almost has a metallic smokey smell like a coal-powered train is going by. Tootsie roll in the background.

T: Chocolate up front, followed by that metallic smokiness, with chile heat on the exhale.

M: Medium bodied, with pretty low carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 20:42:44 | More by circus_cat

FosterJM

California

3.28/5  rDev -15%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

544th review on BA
Cask to Goblet
@ Blue palms

App- Very dark brown with a huge creamy off white head. Lots of spiderweb lacing in this one.

Smell- A mexican taco in a glass. Huge malt base but so damn spicy. Stings the nostrols as Ron Burgundy would say.

Taste- My god man, I couldnt finish it. Way too spicy with a hoppy back end. Very creamy and just way too spicy.

Mouth- a bit light and creamy and leaves a huge spice note.

Drink- I didnt like it. Just way too different and spicy. Worthy effort!

Serving type: cask

06-05-2011 06:23:40 | More by FosterJM

pastradul

California

3.3/5  rDev -14.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

poured out of cask at Pizza Port Solana Beach.

I have had this one draft before and wanted to see what cask did to it.

Poured a dark dark brown with a super creamy light mocha head.

smell: not really much going on at all... a slight smokyness to it, with the ever so slightest smell of spice.

mouthfeel: creamy and smooth

taste: Smoke is the dominate flavor, some mild coffee notes with even more subtle chipotle flavor.

Drinkability: easy to drink.

Was a bit let down by this one. Out of draft that chipotle is super present and is what makes this beer fun to have. The cask, or at least the cask I had killed the chipotle flavor almost all together.

Serving type: cask

06-08-2010 13:23:56 | More by pastradul

IKR

California

3.33/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Very dark brown with a fairly generous light beige head.

Smell: Chocolate and a faint hint of peppers.

Taste: Mild roasted malt notes with a slight hint of peeper in the taste which also brings some faint pepper heat. The beer finishes fairly dry with the pepper heat.

Mouth-feel: Fairly thin bodied with a generous level of carbonation.

Overall: Decent Porter.

2012 Bottle

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2012 03:10:32 | More by IKR

mdmusch

Minnesota

3.33/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - A dark black beer with ruby hues along the edges

S - Roasted malts with an abundance of smoke, I can barely make out a peppery note but it is there.

T - This basically tastes like a good ol' porter. I can taste smoke, but not as prevalent as the nose would assume. I can't really taste a specific chipotle flavor, but I do feel a mild spiciness in the aftertaste.

M - This beer has a great mouthfeel, it has that creamy, light carbonation that makes Porters delicious.

Overall - I ended up getting this beer shipped here in a fairly large order since I knew I would not be finding this anywhere in MN. I'm glad I gave it a try and I'm looking forward to the Vanilla, but if I had to choose, I'd still take a Rogue Mocha Porter or a Black Butte Porter over this.

My rating: B- (Worth a try, especially if you are new to spiced or smoked beers)

Serving type: bottle

07-17-2012 00:17:32 | More by mdmusch

adamette

Ohio

3.4/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Live review. Poured from the 12 oz. bottle that I bought at Heinen's last week for $3.99 as a single into a clean, clear glass. No observed "best by" date.

A Great "Stone" quality head of very light brown creamy that lingers for at least a few minutes over a very dark brown body that glows a deep mahogany in front of direct light. 4.0

S This is going to sound really stupid but it smells like Stone Smoked Porter (a smell that is very good!) with Chipotle added in. Intriguing, deep, smoky goodness. I also smell a nutty goodness as well. I recall that smell from regular Stone Smoked Porter as well. 4.5

T Medium roast malt with smoke but the chipotle for me is an odd, off-putting effect for me and it actually makes this beer taste not very good. The heat of the chipotle pepper lingers which would normally be desirable but really, for me the pepper and the smoke really do not mix very well. 3.0

M Full feel to the beer with the smoke, the chipotle that lingers well after the last sip. This may be the biggest feel of any beer within the style that I have tasted. That is not necessarily a good trait since I really like a more smooth feel in this style. 3.5

D/O Drinkability is fair. Overall this beer is at least fair but the smoke and the chipotle together rubbed me wrong. 3.0

Notes: I noticed on BA that there is a Stone Smoked Porter with Coconut. Now THAT I would be interested in!

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 02:53:38 | More by adamette

begforme4484

Connecticut

3.4/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Picked up a 12oz bottle at Tasty Beverage Co in Raleigh, NC.

Pour black with little tan head. Good lacing on the sides.

Smells smokey, a bit charred, with a big pepper hit. Chipotle is not a big time pepper, but hint of capsaicin is strong.

Smokey with a burnt grain, followed by a good amount of pepper following right after. Some nice hop bitterness at the end, with the peppers and smoke lingering.

Mouthfeel is pretty thin, which was surprising, but that seems to happen with most beer that add peppers.

Overall, it's a decent beer and the peppers match with the smoke decently.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2012 03:26:15 | More by begforme4484

KajII

North Carolina

3.43/5  rDev -11.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

[Suggested Glassware: Nonic Pint]

The pour was a very dark brown with a slight ruby hue and a large (2-3 finger) light brown rocky head that slowly receded, down to a few puddles and large collar producing good spotty lacing.

The aroma was of a roasted dark bread malt and a leathery yeast with notes of baker’s chocolate, roasted coffee, smoke and a nice hot pepper presence.

It tasted roasty with a good bold maltiness along hints of chocolate and coffee from the onset, becoming a tad bitter with a good strong note of smoke and a spicy peppery bite that cleared the sinuses. The flavor lasted a good long while with a smoky peppery espresso taste hitting you right in the back of the throat.

Mouthfeel was a bit past medium in body with a dry, oily texture and a soft carbonation.

Overall this is a brew that possesses a strong bitter smoky flavor with a mild chocolate sweetness and a gentle heated peppery finish...

http://www.facebook.com/KAJIIsBeerReviews

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2012 22:11:25 | More by KajII

Beerevity

3.45/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured hard into a glass leaving a black brew with a nice creamy head. Looked almost like a nitro pour.

Smell is smoke, cream and pepper. Mmmm.

Up front the smoked malt hits immediately and fades ever so quickly into the chipotle peppers. The peppers are very pronounced and there is a definite spiciness that tingles the tongue. The taste reminded me too much of a seasoned steak on the grill, in liquid form. Clearly a mental thing, but this really hindered me from enjoying this beer. I can't knock stone for this though, it's a unique beer that delivers on its additions, unlike the Vanilla version.

As expected from Stone's smoked porter this beer is so smooth and creamy. The chipotle peppers add a nice spicy zing that is left behind long after each sip.

Overall this beer doesn't do it for me personally in the flavor department. I'm a huge fan of smoked porter but the peppers trigger a strange mental fixation for me. Honestly I was surprised at how nicely the peppers compliment this beer though.

Serving type: bottle

08-13-2012 03:45:27 | More by Beerevity