Oyster Stout - The Porterhouse Brewing Company

Rchap1

Tennessee

4/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served on tap at the Porterhouse in Temple Bar.

A: What you'd expect from a dry irish stout, nice and dark, with a bit of red shining through when held to the light. Had a couple fingers of very pale, very creamy head. A big part of this is the pour: if you've never had a properly poured stout before, you'll notice the difference.

S: A little hint of seaweed, not really smelling much oyster, but at least the ocean is there. Otherwise, kind of malty, not much on the hop front.

T: This is a pretty good tasting stout, a little bit of bitterness, some good malty flavor. The finish brings out the oyster a teeny bit, actually what I think is an appropriate amount. Much more oyster flavor might overpower the maltiness.

M: With a pretty light carbonation, this has a subtle feel to it, pretty creamy, what you'd expect from an irish stout

D: I can (and have) put down far too many of these in a single sitting. That being said, if you're a fan of dry stouts, you'll certainly enjoy this.

Overall: Solid competition for the bigger boys in the Irish market!

Serving type: nitro-tap

01-20-2009 01:24:57 | More by Rchap1

sleazo

New York

4/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A_pours a ruby red hidden through a general blackness nice fluffy tan head and lace from the nitro

S_mild roastedness, faint floral hops

T_typical roasted malt components of a dry stout. Nice floralness from the hops. On the end there is a faint briny note. Almost like sea salt.

M_creamy rich and a bit velvety from the nitro/oysters or so I am told.

D_a unique stout. My first oyster stout. Well worth the try and a nice change of pace from the typical dry stouts.

Serving type: nitro-tap

09-12-2008 17:48:27 | More by sleazo

AWolfAtTheDoor

California

3.85/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4

This is a very unique brew. Had the displeasure of being stuck in Dublin for 3 nights and would have blown a lot of money each night at The Porterhouse had Ireland's archaic liquor laws not closed it on Good Friday.. yea I'm still pissed about that.

Anyways, the stout pours a dark semi-transparent black. I can vaguely see through when held up to the light. Similar cascading effect of Guinness after freshly poured. Light mocha coloured head, nice lacing throughout the session.

Roasted malts on the nose.

More roasted malts once this beer hits the palate. Some cream follows, then a nice hop bitterness emerges. If the malts are the yin, the hops are the yang. Very excellent beer. Hops linger and eventually they evolve into a subtle oyster flavor--more on that later.

Thick mouthfeel, what else would you expect from an Irish stout?

The reason for my bombshell 2.5 mouthfeel score is that 20 to 30 minutes after I had paid my tab and was walking around Dublin, I still had the oystery fishy taste in my mouth. It was not very pleasant. Had I cleansed my palate with an other beer before leaving perhaps this not would have happened, but it was definitely a downer. This is a good beer and worth trying, but the Plain Porter they brew is fantastic as well and I would take that over the Oyster any day.

Serving type: on-tap

04-03-2008 15:01:19 | More by AWolfAtTheDoor

foles

Australia

3.78/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a very solid brew that I sampled at the Porterhouse, London. Its pour is pretty standard with a brown/white head. The smell isnt strong, but the fishy oyster presence is there. The taste is roasty, with a hint of oysters, and not a lot else worthe mentioning. Its like a good Guinness in the way it is smooth and easy drinking, but has a hint more flavour and a less bitter finish than the plain porter.

I enjoyed this and its my first choice when I visit the Porterhouse. Extra points for originality!

Serving type: nitro-tap

01-10-2008 09:45:37 | More by foles

CanuckRover

Ontario (Canada)

3.63/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Had this a couple times at the porterhouse, one of my favourite places when I'm in Dublin.

At first it comes across as any of the bar's other fine porters; great roasted malt, coffee and a mouth coating burnt bitterness. An epiphany if you've been drinking Guinness in the Temple all day.
Drink it a little more carefully and you get a pleasant fishiness. I know that sounds horrible, but others have said sea-salt and I think it goes a tad farther than that. Don't let it scare you off, it's a real tasty drink and one of the more original ones I've ever had.

I find it's best to try this with a pint of plain, alternating at least a couple sips, allowing you to clearly taste the taste of Dublin bay.

Serving type: on-tap

12-27-2007 19:05:25 | More by CanuckRover

MillRat

Illinois

3.63/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This is a fairly standard, well-crafted, medium-bodied stout that has a slight sea-water taste to it. I could not for the life of me identify a particularly oyster-ish taste, though they do note on the beer list that this is "not suitable for vegetarians.". It is certainly a fine brew and if it were not for their other two dark brews, the Wrassler stout and plain porter, I would have been most happy with a session drinking this brew.

Serving type: nitro-tap

07-14-2007 21:59:56 | More by MillRat

cypressbob

United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

4.1/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the Porthouse Dublin

Pours with a dark brown body approaching black, thick tight nitro head with good retention

Smell, an initial aroma of the sea, subtle fresh seaside air. Thick roasted malt on the nose

Taste, seaweed, thick bittering roasted malt, well balanced

A tasty stout, very interesting

Serving type: nitro-tap

11-24-2006 12:59:12 | More by cypressbob

granger10

Wisconsin

4.13/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

My favorite stout at Porterhouse in Dublin. Black in color with a slight hint of red shining through. Nice creamy heads maintains itself atop the liquid. Aroma is great. I think I really do smell fresh sea oysters! This is a very aromatic drink, esp once it warms and opens up. Sweet butter english tofee. Smoky Irish peat. Dry roasted African coffee. I really liked the aromas. Taste was also good but not quite as amazing. Tons of roasty flavors with a definite salty, oyster edge to it. I had a few pints of this one and enjoyed them quite nicely.

Serving type: on-tap

03-14-2006 13:58:45 | More by granger10

wl0307

United Kingdom (England)

3.68/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Tasted this beer by half-pint recently at the Covent Garden branch of Porterhouse pub.
A: the appearance is just like their XXXX Stout, almost black though slightly lighter in the silhouette when seen against light. The creamy and frothy head leaves very very fine sheets of brownish lace around the side of the glass. Flawless--for a nitro-tap poured beer.
S: lightly herbal flavour of hops and roasted dark malts on the nose with lots of similar elements of XXXX Stout, but it smells much lighter.
T&M: a hint of sea-water kind of slightly salty flavour comes through with a creamy texture of roasted malts--slightly smoked but also refreshing along with "floating" hoppy presence on the palate. Lightly savoury-sweet finish on top of residual, low-level bitterness of dark malts. Overall it's medium-bodied and medium-flavoured, while its creamy smooth texture is not compromised by oysters but apparently thinner than XXXX Stout. It could be more dark malty and roasted bitter to be really flavoursome, but I can imagine that it pairs well with fresh oysters all the same!

Serving type: nitro-tap

11-30-2005 17:11:11 | More by wl0307

taez555

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this at the Porterhouse in London.

Poured a black body with a decent white nitro type head.

A nice rich black slightly burnt coffee or chocolate malt flavor. A slight touch of saltiness actually. A firm even bitterness from start to finish. Just a classic Guinness style stout with a bit more flavor than the Irish benchmark.

Not quite as rich or malty as the 4X stout by the porterhouse. Still a very nice beer that I wouldn’t hesitate having again.

Serving type: nitro-tap

09-02-2004 09:16:29 | More by taez555

cbl2

New York

4.63/5  rDev +26.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance:

Pitch black with quarter inch tan head.

Smell:

Sweet roasted malt, and a hint of salt.

Taste/Mouthfeel:

The smoothest stout I've ever sampled. Absolutely astounding. Not much taste of the sea, but a pleasant sweetness that changes into a nice bitter finish.

Serving type: on-tap

06-16-2004 20:34:50 | More by cbl2

UncleJimbo

Massachusetts

4.08/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Sampled on tap at the Porterhouse in London.

This stout poured a very dark brown (practically black) with creamy, tan, nitrogen foam that clung to the glass and coated nicely. The smell was faint but distinctly dark malt. The taste was dark malt with very low bitterness and a hint of saltiness. The mouthfeel was very smooth and creamy with medium body and moderate carbonation. Overall a dry stout. This was a very nice and drinkable stout.

Serving type: nitro-tap

12-10-2003 00:34:06 | More by UncleJimbo

BenConnery

Australia

4.47/5  rDev +21.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Tasted this one in the Porterhouse in Dublin while on holiday there.
A thick black beer in the glass with a traditional creamy head. Smells were of the roasted variety as with many creamy stouts.
Not put off by the description of oysters in the brewing, after all Guinness and oysters are supposed to be a great combination so this would appear to be a logical extension really...
The tastes were all you'd expect from a creamy smooth stout, some licorice and coffee, perhaps burnt caramel. I think not as roasted as a Guinness but so smooth and creamy and full of body. I personally, and Irish readers don't hate me here, rate this above Guinness. I had them in Dublin, from the source, within a few days of each other and as good as Guinness in Ireland is, I loved this stout even more.

Serving type: on-tap

09-25-2003 23:33:00 | More by BenConnery

rastaman

United Kingdom (England)

3.1/5  rDev -15.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pretty nice, but a bit lighter than i thought it would be, still a nice bitter coffee flavour and very smooth. Nitrofied, which i don't like, but again managed to keep some character, unlike Guinness. Too creamy in the end with some decent amount of flavour, up and down for me, thers good and bad points.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2003 02:24:03 | More by rastaman

stcules

Italy

3.85/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A complex stout. Black colour. Toasted aroma, ligthly caramel. The taste is less toasted, but with licorice and vanilla. Smooth and aromatic. Maybe because it is brewed with fresh oyster. The aftertaste is liquer-like (sherry) and spicy, and light bitter, more evident in the finish. Good body.

Serving type: on-tap

08-29-2002 11:44:25 | More by stcules