Drake's Black Robusto Porter - Drake's Brewing Co.

SHODriver

California

3.69/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A: pours a deep black with a finger and a half of dense light tan head with good retention into a nonic pint glass
S: smells intensely chocolatey and roasty with just a hint of espresso
T: chocolate up front followed by some nice roastyness, a bit of herbal and spicy hop as well with a hint of coffee. swallow brings more roastyness and chocolate with a bit of spicy hop
M: fuller side of medium in the mouth with a nice and soft carbonation
O: not a bad beer at all. good flavors and easy drinking.

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2013 04:36:17 | More by SHODriver

BeerBeast

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

05-19-2013 00:32:25 | More by BeerBeast

deebo

Minnesota

4.16/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up several beers from Drake's on a February trip to Bay Area. Finally getting around to trying the first. A bomber of their black robusto.

A-Poured into a pint glass this beer sparks off into a couple fingers of a dark tan bubbly, lively head with little staying power and little glass lacing. Dark brown in color with lots of tan floaters.

S-Definitely porter-ish...roasted dark malts with a definite bittersweet cocoa edge. I like that it doesn't smell burnt but slightly sweet instead.

T-Starts off with a rich deeply roasted malt that starts chocolately and ends in a flavor remniscent of medium roast coffee. Dry finish with just a bit of sweetness. Fairly low bitterness.

M-The first thing that jumps out at me about this beer is it's soft mouthfeel, low in astringency and harshness-a very nice quality in a porter. Moderate carbonation. A quick finish for a porter. The alcohol is completely hidden.

O-An easy drinking porter with nice dark roasted character. Worth drinking.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2013 02:29:51 | More by deebo

largadeer

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

05-08-2013 04:40:22 | More by largadeer

Bubba83

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

04-27-2013 08:21:50 | More by Bubba83

Philousa

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Imbibed on tap at Bair Island in San Carlos.

Poured an opaque, murky black, bright amber around the edges against the light. Big creamy tan head settles to thinly cover the top. Smells like a porter should: lots of dark malt, some coffee, baker's chocolate, and slight vanilla, which to me hints towards creaminess. The taste comes across thin, dry and chalky. Typical flavors such as dark chocolate and roasty malts are duking it out with fruity flavors like raspberry and green apple. Very odd to me. Dry finish with some green hop bitterness.

I'm not the biggest fan, but I suspect this line may have switched the lines with a cider and failed to clean the lines properly. Not sure if I should have reviewed it with this suspicion, but I feel I got enough of the true flavor to pass judgment.

EDIT: I just tried this out of the bottle and I think something was wrong with the tap lines. Most of the big flaws were absent in this bottle. In addition to what was described above: I get some creaminess in the aroma, almost lactic. Taste is not dry, but finish is. Baker's chocolate remains, but it's not chalky. Some fruitiness is observable but it's fleeting. Really digging this after months of pooh poohing it.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2013 04:17:18 | More by Philousa

caligreen333

California

3.86/5  rDev -2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

The only reason I am reviewing this beer is because I am now currently drinking a Bear Republic BLACK STOUT and it does hold its own against this Porter! Mind you I am not the best candidate to review a beer at this moment considering I have already had about 4 IPA's, BUT for comparison purposes I had about 4 IPA's last night before I had the Drake Robusto. All I want to say in this review is if you have had a good amount to drink and are still looking for a "closer" beer for the end of the night then this is it. It has a strong flavor, over powers the Bear Republic "BLACK STOUT" which is rated at a higher level. I know your thinking a Stout is not supposed to be a porter, well this isn't about that. The basic's behind this review is to show that if you want a strong flavored smokey malty beer, the Robusto is the way to go. End of rant. The avg ratings mean I dont know so really I give it a 4.0 at least. Thanks Drakes for making an affordable Porter that packs a punch!

Serving type: bottle

04-16-2013 01:37:09 | More by caligreen333

GennyCreamAle

New York

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

04-13-2013 23:04:12 | More by GennyCreamAle

ChumleyX

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

04-06-2013 19:02:28 | More by ChumleyX

TheSixthRing

California

3.81/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Appearance - Pours near black with a tan, finger width head. Sub-par retention, leaving behind a thin layer of microbubbles on the surface and around the edge of the glass. Lacing is minimal and spotty, with fair stick.

Smell - Milk chocolate; touches on baker's chocolate and mild coffee roast, with hints of earth.

Taste - Follows the nose. Moderate chocolate sweetness, met with undertones of baker's chocolate and coffee bitterness that rides out to the finish.

Mouthfeel - Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation. Smooth from start to finish.

Overall - Very approachable porter. It might not quite satisfy the geekiest of dark ale aficionados, but there's enough here to respect it. By that same token, I think anyone getting into porters would find this rich, but not overwhelming. When all's said and done, however, I myself would rather pony up for a Black Butte sixer at nearly half the price per ounce, which to me is not only the better beer, but obviously a far better value.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 02:22:31 | More by TheSixthRing

tbone1384

Wyoming

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-13-2013 01:57:54 | More by tbone1384

elNopalero

Texas

4.55/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This pours a dark black with some light foam. There’s a great roasty aroma undercut by a lightly handed smokey note. The flavor is well rounded with a roasty dark coffee characteristic and just a touch of the smoke. Another solid selection from Drakes.

Serving type: on-tap

03-12-2013 06:47:56 | More by elNopalero

Gregfalone

California

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

03-10-2013 06:56:30 | More by Gregfalone

InfernoBoss

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

03-09-2013 08:18:35 | More by InfernoBoss

beertholomeus

California

4.5/5  rDev +14.2%

03-05-2013 08:46:58 | More by beertholomeus

justinbrown

California

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

02-28-2013 01:37:02 | More by justinbrown

TwelveOunces

Kentucky

4.44/5  rDev +12.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bomber poured into a tulip

A- Pours very black with brown hues. A one finger of a nice tan head. Good retention.

S- A super robust roasty beer. A lot of roasted malt and burnt caramel. A slight chocolate and espresso. Smells thick and bold.

T- A huge massive roasted quality to this beer. A slight burnt nuttyness to it. A big dark chocolate flavor. Burnt caramel and coffee. A very well balanced porter and extremely drinkable. A slight spicyness and a slight hop bitterness from the hops.

M- Thick, dark, very well balanced and drinkable. A lot of feel and nice carbonaiton.

O- Very impressed with this porter. It has the intense qualities I look for in a porter and fantastic balance and drink ability.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2013 00:33:01 | More by TwelveOunces

drummermattie02

Texas

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-21-2013 02:37:16 | More by drummermattie02

beerme411

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-20-2013 21:55:52 | More by beerme411

hayesjw

California

4.25/5  rDev +7.9%

02-20-2013 00:39:45 | More by hayesjw

johnnyboy76

Oregon

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

02-18-2013 04:21:37 | More by johnnyboy76

WestCoastBrew2

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

02-06-2013 20:31:32 | More by WestCoastBrew2

12owls

California

4/5  rDev +1.5%

01-31-2013 22:44:27 | More by 12owls

GRG1313

California

3.5/5  rDev -11.2%

01-19-2013 22:34:08 | More by GRG1313

brotherloco

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.8%

01-14-2013 02:13:32 | More by brotherloco