Baltika #6 Porter - Baltika Breweries

grub

Ontario (Canada)

2.48/5  rDev -31.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

pours a dark brown colour with no sign of any head or carbonation.

aroma is slightly roasty and really fruity. cherries. i swear it smells like the belle vue kriek that i had earlier today (different glass, so i know i'm not smelling the other beer).

taste is nice. roasty, and not a trace of the cherry i was getting in the nose. nice bready malt. i find the complete lack of carbonation distracting. the whole beer is just coming across flat, and i feel like it'd be so much better when carbonated. there's just not much else there.

mouthfeel is all wrong due to the lack of carbonation. i can see the potential, but it's just not there.

drinkability isn't great. i'm sure it'd be better if carbonated. the malt that does come through is balancing the alcohol fairly well.

slightly disappointed in this one. i can see that it could be better with carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2006 00:19:12 | More by grub

cjgator3

Florida

2.48/5  rDev -31.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Pours a nearly pitch black color with a light tan head. The aroma is pretty faint with some dark roasted malt and a little bit of chocolate. The taste features some roasted malts with a dry bitter finish that is a bit boozy. The mouthfeel is lacking any real depth and is too thin and watery. Overall, I am not a big fan of this porter at all and would not purchase again.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2007 03:30:21 | More by cjgator3

Naerhu

Japan

2.55/5  rDev -29.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance - Dark tan head. Jet black opaque body.
Smell - Eastern European dark bread aroma with molasses and coffee notes.
Taste - tastes like burnt cola. I do not even like cola when it is not burnt. Also tastes slightly of Hershey’s chocolate, I do not like Hershey’s chocolate.
Mouthfeel - Very light body.
Drinkability - despite being served at room temperature, this might have been served too cold, but my heating went out and unless I was going to put it in the microwave or heat it on my stove it was going to be served at a very chilly room temperature.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2004 15:17:21 | More by Naerhu

BeefyMee

Connecticut

2.55/5  rDev -29.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: Pretty solid here. A nearly black body with a good sized head and a little bit of lacing.

Smell: A malty sweetness accompanied by some alcohol. The alcohol aroma becomes more prevalent in the last half of the glass.

Taste: Good at first but this did not last long. It initially gave me this strong Samuel Smith vibe, like a Nut Brown mixed with a Taddy Porter. The nutty flavor was very noticeable, but this soon gave way to a taste of strong alcohol that was biting in the aftertaste. The nuttiness remains but is dominated by the alcohol.

Mouthfeel: Kind of thin with a bit of acidity on the tongue.

Drinkability: I'll finish this one, but...well let's just say I'm not upset that I didn't buy another.

Beef Notes: It wouldn't take much to make this an above average brew. Some of that alcohol taste just needs to go away. I still don't understand why it tastes so much like alcohol when it's only 7%. I won't be returning to this one until someone tells me they've changed the recipe.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2004 05:09:47 | More by BeefyMee

stereosforgeeks

Virginia

2.55/5  rDev -29.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance - The hue is black and red. There was a thin creamy brown head.

Smell - Dark malts with some prunes, chocolate and anise.

Taste - The malts, prunes, sweet chocolate all mix well. However, the anise is a bit overpowering. As anise is not one of my favorite flavors I found it a bit off putting.

Mouthfeel - Smooth but a little thin.

Drinkability - The anise will keep me away from drinking more, but I can see how others could be a fan.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2007 02:24:05 | More by stereosforgeeks

GeezLynn

Minnesota

2.55/5  rDev -29.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Production date: 04 04 09. Best before: 04 04 10

Very dark brown pour with a large-bubbled, frothy beige head. Smell is sweet lactose and a little caramel and roasted malts. Flavor is a shallow roasted dark malt. A little stale coffee, a little ashiness, and a distinctive metallic quality. Finish is very abrupt for the style. Mouthfeel has about the right body and carbonation level for the style, maybe just a touch on the bubbly side.

The flavor on this beer was just not very good. Either this guy is not adequately built for the voyage, or it is just a sub-par beer. Did not enjoy this.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2010 04:21:18 | More by GeezLynn

GreenWBush

Oregon

2.6/5  rDev -28.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Shaded eggplant in color with a head that is initially large, but goes almost completely flat. Slight peaks and valleys of lace stick to the vessel.

Nose is somewhat offputting, filled with suggestions of grape, DMS/corn, cereal grains, and light cocoa-drenched caramel.

Taste is again rather grape-like, then becomes infused with a dingy bitterness and cloying sugar-boosted sweetness. Odd cheap-vodka burn in there too, surprise surprise. Odd insta-buzz in the head is also noticed from the first few sips.

Smooth on the mouth, this one reminds me all in all of the similarly misnamed AB Amber-bock. I guess this was $1.18 for a reason...

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2006 20:46:38 | More by GreenWBush

claybeer

Oklahoma

2.6/5  rDev -28.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

It has a real dark used motor oil black color. Very little if any light shines through. The light that does make it through has a red tint to it. The head is a light frothy tan color. The nose has a nice rich chocolate to it but absolutely nothing else. The taste is very similar. I can't tell if it is really soft or just thin. It's difficult to differentiate between the two. Some of the chocolate notes come through on the tongue but not much. The second sip shows that this beer is just really thin and more watered down. I don't get much of a finish. It's kind of a boring beer but not terrible.

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2010 16:18:59 | More by claybeer

JamesS

Indiana

2.63/5  rDev -27.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Poured a great dark brown/black with nice light tan head and good lacing. Odd scent, not really a porter (no darkness, coffee, or burnt hints). It had more of a lager scent. Not much of a porter taste, either, but was more like a chocolate amber. Decent chocolate tones, but not very good with the other usual porter tastes at all. Went down fine as far as mouthfeel, but I'll never get another batch of these.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2008 00:31:33 | More by JamesS

yeahnatenelson

Illinois

2.63/5  rDev -27.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Appearance -- Pours a dark brown with ruby highlights. Massive sudsy tan head. Pretty much what I come to expect in a true Baltic Porter.

Smell -- Red grapes are most apparent at first, then faint molasses and cocoa powder. Not a whole lot going on in the aroma department.

Taste -- Quite sweet. Lots of raisin and prune, faint roast malt bitterness, cocoa, and a little bit of herbal hoppiness in the finish.

Mouthfeel -- Light in body with moderate fluffy carbonation.

Drinkability -- Meh. A bit of a letdown. Very simple, very sweet. I don't necessarily mind sweet beers, but there wasn't much of anything going on with this one. Was hoping for this to be a bit of a sleeper, but to no avail. C'est La Vie...

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2010 03:00:18 | More by yeahnatenelson

Mitchster

Michigan

2.65/5  rDev -26.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Pours out to a clear "very dark-brown, almost black" with a hint of dark brown at the edges, forming a thick tan head atop fine bubbles. Medium carbonation. Retention and lacing are excellent. Aroma is somewhat mild with black walnut, vanilla, a suggestion of dark bananas, molasses and caramel. Medium-dense body with a smooth mouthfeel. Taste is much the same with a metallic note in the middle and finish, as well as perceptable taste of alcohol and black walnut. Finish has an odd cola tang. There is the taste of rum in the middle. Little discernable hop flavor or aroma, with a chemical "hop extract" character.

By any account, this is a stout, but not a very good one at that. The perceptable flavor of alcohol, hop extract and metal limits it's drinkability, akin to a Sheaf Stout or Ceres Royal Stout. Vastly inferior to Sinebrychoff or Okocim in my book. Not a bad beer, but I'll pass on having this one again. Throughly unimpressed.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2003 00:21:33 | More by Mitchster

LucienDeRubempre

New Jersey

2.68/5  rDev -26%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Poured from a pint bottle into a clean pub glass.

Strong pour produces a fluffy head that looks like the foam on the shallows of the Ohio river, stiff and silty-brown with nuclear waste bubbles and an oily sheen. The nose strikes a balance between over-roasted malt and macro-lager rice stench. What really disappoints is the taste; a bad dark beer with all the worst parts of a bad light beer. Really similar to kvass, unsurprisingly. Creepy weird aftertaste and a weak mouthfeel, nothing like the robustness of a good porter.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2010 07:08:05 | More by LucienDeRubempre

connecticutpoet

Connecticut

2.75/5  rDev -24%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

After drinking Baltika Extra, my hopes for this beer went down, but I thought that being a porter, it would have more body and potentially be better.

This beer is a dark brown in color, with a short tan head that fades away to a light foam. Not too bad.

The aroma is of dark chocolate malts and lightly roasted coffee. Again, not too bad.

Then for the taste... bitter foretaste, lightly roasted and highly carbonated, bitter aftertaste, and a trace of medicinal tastes much like the Extra.

Mouthfeel was very thin for a Porter.

Not a good example of the style.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2004 02:20:10 | More by connecticutpoet

Estarrio

Massachusetts

2.78/5  rDev -23.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

I purchased this at the suggestion of a local beer store...

Dark, motor oil pour with a thin smoky head...this looks like a porter to be sure!

Again, typical porter smells; chocolate, coffee astringency and...what's this? Sweet, raspberry soda. Cloyingly sweet. Am I drinking a malternative? The strong raspberry and dark fruit esters are unexpected but I'm intrigued and up to try something new.

The flavor is overpowered by the sweetness. The taste is reminiscent of one of my under-attenuated homebrew failures. The chocolate malt is engulfed by the sweetness with hints of raspberry soda to give this a pop-like character. At first it grabs my attention but with each sip I'm put off more and more...

If you are looking for something different and can get past the sweetness, then this is worth a try. It is certainly a unique beer, just not for me.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2007 02:13:45 | More by Estarrio

jwhawkins81

Ohio

2.78/5  rDev -23.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Bottled on 4/24/2009 tasted on 2/19/2010

Aroma - Slight roast with a dark fruit sweetness. This is a very good and complex aroma.

Appearance - Dark with a very big light brown head.

Taste - Sweet and slightly earthy. Noticeable absence of roasted malt flavors. Too sweet to be enjoyable really.

Notes - Medium mouthfeel

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2010 19:22:07 | More by jwhawkins81

nlmartin

Ohio

2.83/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

This bottle was served in a pub glass.

Appearance The beer poured black with ruby opaqueness to light. The beers head was thin creamed coffee coloration. There was no retention noted on the head.

Smell: The beer has a lightly roasted coffee. There was dark fruity soy sauce present in the smell. This one frankly smelled very boozy.

Taste: The beer has a up front peppery bitterness. There is a lightly roasted coffee taste. This is all coupled with a prune juice flavor that mixes with a bit of soy sauce.

Mouthfeel/ Drinkability: This beer seemed to be a bit on the watery thin side. The taste doesnt linger and is a bit thin. The alcohol is major present in the taste. This is just not a beer to go out of your way for.

Serving type: bottle

04-22-2006 13:06:56 | More by nlmartin

Lothore

California

2.83/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

A- Upon first look this brew is a deep black, when held up to the light a dark maroon color is seen. Semi-thick brown head which fades quickly leaving little to no lacing

S- Coffee, Sweet Dark fruits... I could swear I smell a hint of grapes.

T- Starts with very little taste finishes strong. Coffee, strange semi sweet fruit taste that doesnt sit very well.

M- very little carbonation, fairly thick.

D- I find this one hard to drink. It doesn't taste particularly strong but just rubs me the wrong way mouthfeel and taste wise.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2007 04:30:02 | More by Lothore

smcolw

Massachusetts

2.83/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

I'm not sure what a "Baltic" porter is supposed to taste like; but this one is quite different from most porters I've had. Nice near-black color, good lasting beige head. Surprisingly, little lasting lace.

Sweet molasses aroma that is greater than any chocolate or mocha that might be found. A strong level of metal present also.

Sweet, almost like brandy. Some warming alcohol. Reminds me far more of a double bock than a porter. I cannot detect any hops at all.

Too sweet for me, making it more one-dimensional without any complexity.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2008 21:09:13 | More by smcolw

waldoiverson

Texas

2.83/5  rDev -21.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

bottle into nonic

A: large pillow of a dark brown head, quite black and ample carbonation

S: quite fragrantly sweet, a bit of carob on the nose, lots of CO2

T: laffy taffy sweetness, bit of a burnt sugar taste, a little bit of grassy astringency

M: clean, light body with a bit of CO2 tingle

O: This isn't bad but it also isn't good. it is just too sweet for this guy.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2012 22:46:16 | More by waldoiverson

Rudgers73

New York

2.85/5  rDev -21.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

This is one of those porters that is just so sticky sweet and chocolatey that it's hard to finish. It is sweet and heavy with a molasses that sticks on your tongue and wont come off. The mouthfeel is very thick and creamy, which isn't normally a bad thing but due to the sweetness it could stand to be a bit thinner. It seems to get richer with warmer temperature. I noticed half-way through the drink that it was supposed to be served from 10-20 degrees C and I don't think I would have made it through if it started that warm.

As rich as pecan pie. A little much for my taste.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2006 19:46:56 | More by Rudgers73

vikingmike

Ontario (Canada)

2.85/5  rDev -21.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: A rich ruby/crimson colour when held up to light. At first glance, it looks black. Interesting head in that it had different shades of brown mixing about. It didn't stick around very long, though.

Smell: Caramel. Smoke.

Taste: Quite sweet but not overbearingly so. Kind of a molasses/dark chocolate mix. Definitely not a fan of the aftertaste; very smoky.

Mouthfeel: Thick. "Residuey"

Drinkability: This beer isn't bad but like other Baltika beers it seems like extra sugar was added prior to bottling. Definitely a slow-sipper type drink, I could not handle more than one of these.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2008 09:57:41 | More by vikingmike

Popkas

Colorado

2.85/5  rDev -21.3%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Pours reminds me of a pour from a 2 liter Dr. Pepper bottle that was opened a week ago. It's dark, flat black. Nose is better than the appearance with some decent roasted maltiness and a little hidden smoke. The taste is undewhelming until the very end where there is a nice bit of roasted malt flavor. Mouth feel is meh. A fun beer to drink with friends, but not overly enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2010 02:45:20 | More by Popkas

magictrokini

California

2.88/5  rDev -20.4%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Was unpleasantly surprised with this beer. Looks great, dark with a wee bit of head. But smells like raisins and licorice. Taste is the same. Sickeningly raisin sweet with a caramel back. Body is not porter-like, kind of thin and watery. I'll stick with the other offerings from Baltika.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2008 16:49:06 | More by magictrokini

WJVII

Wisconsin

2.88/5  rDev -20.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured into a pint glass this brew has a dark chocolate color similar to cola and a nice 2 finger milk chocolate head that settles nice to a thin cap leaving minimal lacing. The aroma is yeasty with some slight burnt malts, a little prune and some chocolate. The taste is thin and not very full of flavor. There is some slight dark fruit and a little malt, but nothing of chocolate or or caramel as expected. The body is medium and carbonation is moderate. Not the best example of a porter I have had but maybe a bad bottle?

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2010 00:09:21 | More by WJVII

cbn

Florida

2.9/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Pours dark reddish brown, the color of cola, beige head retreats leaving a thin ring .

Aroma, very thin dark roast, faint hint of sea air.

Weak roast malt, touch of molasses and a ripe banana.

Rather thin for the style, a bit sticky after-taste.

Although drinkable, this brew does not satisfy my thirst for a true porter. Not much to see here, move along!

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2008 15:44:53 | More by cbn