Baltic Porter - Uncommon Brewers

LiquidAmber

Washington

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into an Elysian snifter. Pours a very dark ruddy brown amber with a nice finger of light brown head with great retention and lacing. Aroma of chocolate, toasted mallt and a hint of cherry and anise. Flavor of light fruit esters, toasted malt, licorice and hint of chocolate and cherry. Finishes with an interesting wave of toasted malt and more fruit, leaving a long, pleasant and spicey aftertaste. Medium bodied with light creaminess. Not quite a traditional Baltic porter, but I found the uncharacteristically estery fruit component was very nicely balanced with the malt and spices. Pleasant and well done.

Serving type: can

01-27-2013 04:26:49 | More by LiquidAmber

tugg407

Florida

3.25/5  rDev -14.2%

05-13-2013 04:16:05 | More by tugg407

Monalenard

Illinois

3.29/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 2.5

pours black with a giant cola head with big bubbles to match that quickly dissipate to leave a brown, actively fizzy right. No lacing. This carbonation is the number one reason that i usually hate porters (i don't really have a number two reason). However, that is the style, so i'm not sure what i expected. The nose is pretty nice, you can sense that there is going to be an alcohol burn not unlike that of a dark scotch ale-loch down comes to mind. Subtle to medium hops, toasted malts, vanilla, maybe a little coffee or its just a confusion of the toasty notes and the vanilla. either way, quite nice. Taste, goddamnit bubbles, fuck off, i'm trying to taste this beer. again, this is what i hate about porters, they're good but you have to TRY to taste them through a thick electric fence of abrasive carbonation. The taste follows the nose exactly and its very good. I suspect i might have scored this part higher if i could actually taste it more through the assault of the novelty children's drink this is bred with. Maybe thats just me, and this is just a porter for ya. So, i don't think i really even need to address mouthfeel at this point. I love all beer just for the sake of variety and when i want dark i typically stick to my stouts but every once in a while i just have to remind myself that porters aren't my thing... backtracking- definitely some coffee.

Serving type: can

05-07-2013 19:09:43 | More by Monalenard

cyrushire

Florida

3.25/5  rDev -14.2%

05-03-2013 06:14:16 | More by cyrushire

MarkyMOD

Colorado

4/5  rDev +5.5%

05-03-2013 05:29:47 | More by MarkyMOD

Bfarr

Washington

1.75/5  rDev -53.8%

04-19-2013 21:01:57 | More by Bfarr

MarioM

California

3.75/5  rDev -1.1%

04-15-2013 02:13:30 | More by MarioM

blackie

Virginia

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

single from WF Fairfax

a: tall boy can into a wide belgian snifter, the beer is a deep brown in color - essentially black in low light, a nice layer of head falling back quickly to a thin ring

s: semisweet chocolate chips hit the forward end, the licorice and anise aren't as obvious as anticipated, which is probably a good thing - as is they add a nice depth with a gentle root beer-like aroma, smooth barley roasts, some toffee sweetness, touches of alcohol

m: carbonation just under moderate, body light-medium

t: a nudge of slight sweetness tempers dry roasted barley flavors that run from start to finish, not much licorice/anise flavor - I suppose it's melded into the roasty structure, later on I do pick up what may be the anise in the form of a root beer flavor as found on the nose, hop flavors not particularly distinct, contributing a mild-moderate bitterness to the dry finish

o: not a huge or terribly complex baltic, but nicely structured and well-designed, the additives give the aroma a little push but aren't noticeably integral to the success of this one

Serving type: can

04-08-2013 01:27:59 | More by blackie

Mattyb79

Virginia

4.25/5  rDev +12.1%

04-06-2013 23:40:36 | More by Mattyb79

westcoastbeerlvr

California

3.25/5  rDev -14.2%

04-06-2013 05:57:54 | More by westcoastbeerlvr

bcm75

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +12.1%

03-31-2013 22:15:45 | More by bcm75

litheum94

California

3.5/5  rDev -7.7%

03-15-2013 03:10:47 | More by litheum94

leedorham

Washington

2/5  rDev -47.2%

03-12-2013 15:09:07 | More by leedorham

OBeerMeGreatOne

California

4.25/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours out a deep dark chocolate, large, frothy tan head. Pretty sweet lace retention.

Chocolate, plum and earthy hops fill the nose. Nice hint of anise and spice.

Thick and smooth going down. Chocolate and anise combine with a bit of dark fruit (plum) to start this off. Earthy hops and a hint of citrus give it a nice hop balance.

Very nice Baltic Porter. I'll definitely grab up a 4-pack.

Serving type: can

03-09-2013 23:55:54 | More by OBeerMeGreatOne

t0rin0

California

3.5/5  rDev -7.7%

03-04-2013 16:25:40 | More by t0rin0

calvin233

3.75/5  rDev -1.1%

02-19-2013 20:34:31 | More by calvin233

twelveinches

Washington

3.5/5  rDev -7.7%

02-03-2013 06:44:41 | More by twelveinches

acurtis

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -1.1%

01-27-2013 20:06:59 | More by acurtis

jlenik

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev +12.1%

01-20-2013 14:44:09 | More by jlenik

farrago

New Jersey

3.99/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The pour yields close to two fingers of active foam, plenty of larger bubbles and snap, crackle and pop across the whole surface, very dark brown color, given that fizziness not surprising head retention is average at best. The liquid is equally dark and opaque, stays more in the brown than black range, this supported by the orange aura around the outside, appears clean and unblemished, hard to discern any bubbles present. The nose loaded with roasted coffee, mocha and chocolate notes then moves from toast into sweeter caramel, licorice, banana bread and lower levels of peach, apricot fruit and orange zest, not that complex but highly pungent and lingering. Medium-bodied, creamy in texture with a fair degree of booziness to it, evokes something close to vanillin oak, coconut and butterscotch. Piles on the roasted chocolate, coffee and the licorice a major factor too, almost minty at times, pinch of nutmeg. The carbonation is on the low side and tends to accentuate that creaminess. After awhile, hard to really register much past the chocolate element, minimal cherry and peach fruit flavors as well as little hoppiness. If you like roast and can see past the booziness it’s easy enough to pound down.

Serving type: can

01-16-2013 04:09:24 | More by farrago

Jerry

Illinois

4/5  rDev +5.5%

01-09-2013 00:58:40 | More by Jerry

MRsojourner

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

16oz tall boy can poured into a nice High and Mighty mug. the pour looked so thick like an imperial stout nice and silky and black as night
The aroma had a bit of anise and some fumes of hot alcohol.
The taste was of a mild coffee and a musty chocolate combo followed by just a hint of earthy hops to balance it out. it is very clean and somewhat refreshing. medium mouthfeel with a head that sticks around for a while. enjoyable for sure. ill set a couple of these down for a year and see what happens.

Serving type: can

01-03-2013 22:08:04 | More by MRsojourner

msondel

Massachusetts

5/5  rDev +31.9%

01-02-2013 02:25:30 | More by msondel

lacqueredmouse

Australia

3.58/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pint can purchased from Slowbeer in Melbourne. If I love beer in cans in general, you better believe I love a canned baltic porter.

Pours an oily brown colour, with a surprising thinness to the body. Head forms a flush of brown cola-foam initially, but quickly flakes out and becomes an almost immaterial ring around the edge. Some weak, bubbly carbonation lends again that sense that it's really quite thin. I'm unimpressed.

Nose is dark and roasted, but not overwhelmingly so: underneath are notes of liquorice, and a related booziness like ouzo or raki. There's a slightly tannic overtone as well perhaps, a brusque burnt tea-leaf or red wine sediment character. Despite all of this, it maintains that reedy thinness. It's ok, but not really actually good.

Taste is certainly a little better, with a roundness giving a nutty flavour on the mid palate and towards the finish. This melds with and sometimes masks the aniseed character, and the harsh tannins which threatened to invade on the nose. Spicy finish leaves a nice bite, before that pleasant nut character smooths and lingers.

Feel is pleasant enough, but still lacking a little body.

Fortunately, the beer has redeemed itself by the end. That nut character which appeared out of nowhere provided coherence and structure, and blended the flavours of the beer into a sensible whole. Without it, it would be a very different story.

Serving type: can

12-22-2012 06:59:10 | More by lacqueredmouse

Ryan011235

Ohio

3.03/5  rDev -20.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured into a Pumking glass on 12/15/12

05/26/2011 stamped on the can

Very dark mahogany brown; nearly black in the glass, save for the stem. The head is nearly two fingers, but drops quickly to a thin layer. Hardly any lace.

The aroma is pretty well smoothed over at this point. Layers of dark grains, coffee beans, roasted chocolate and anise. Lots of dark berry overtones: black cherry, blueberry and blackberry. Hints of alcohol. Dark berries hit the palate quickly, before a ghost note of anise leads on to hints of dry roasted coffee atop creamy, bittersweet chocolate. The finish is quite dry, despite the beer being moderately sugary. Medium full body with creamy carbonation.

Overall, this is decent enough Baltic Porter. Then again, I'm a sucker for a Baltic Porter.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2012 02:46:15 | More by Ryan011235