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Trafalgar Cognac Aged Porter
All or Nothing Brewhouse
- From:
- All or Nothing Brewhouse
- Ontario, Canada
- Style:
- American Porter
- ABV:
- 5%
- Score:
- 79
- Avg:
- 3.24 | pDev: 8.64%
- Reviews:
- 8
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Apr 13, 2014
- Added:
- Jan 14, 2013
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by BuckyBeerBeaver from Canada (ON)
3.67/5 rDev +13.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.67/5 rDev +13.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Although Trafalgar has been a bit of a hit and miss brewery, hope springs eternal and Bucky picked up their Cognac-Aged Porter ("CAP") in a Downsview LCBO. CAP came in an attractive 500 ml ceramic jug with a resealable stopper, and a "best before" date of July 2013 punched into the rear label. CAP was 5.0% alcohol by volume. The first question that pops into my head after reading the label...5.0% abv? This seems awfully light for a cognac aged porter.
CAP poured an opaque dark brown colour, with ruby highlights when backlit. An aggressive pour produced a thin, short-lived head that fizzled into a thin film within seconds. Not surprisingly, CAP left zero lacing and spotting down the glass. Its aroma was dominated by dark, roasted malts with just the slightest hints of oak and cognac. The oak and cognac elements became more noticeable when the beer was agitated, but were still too faint for my liking. Likewise with the flavour...the porter itself was quite nice with a strong coffee malt presence and slightly bitter coffee finish and aftertaste, but the oak and cognac were almost completely lost in the strong dark malts. For a porter I found CAP to be relatively light bodied with a thin mouth feel, and a light carbonation typical of the style. Overall, a very nice porter base, but Trafalgar really needs to heft up the "cognac-aged" elements and the body of the beer. As an experiment I resealed the empty jug using the attached stopper, and reopened it the next day giving the jug a sniff before I wrote this review. Absolutely magical cognac and oak aromas, giving an indication of what CAP could have been! Hopefully Trafalgar will make a few adjustments if they re-release this beer to realize its potential. At $8.95 per 500 ml jug I imagine that we are paying mainly for the packaging. There's enough promise here that I might try this beer again next year in the hope of some improvement.
Apr 13, 2014CAP poured an opaque dark brown colour, with ruby highlights when backlit. An aggressive pour produced a thin, short-lived head that fizzled into a thin film within seconds. Not surprisingly, CAP left zero lacing and spotting down the glass. Its aroma was dominated by dark, roasted malts with just the slightest hints of oak and cognac. The oak and cognac elements became more noticeable when the beer was agitated, but were still too faint for my liking. Likewise with the flavour...the porter itself was quite nice with a strong coffee malt presence and slightly bitter coffee finish and aftertaste, but the oak and cognac were almost completely lost in the strong dark malts. For a porter I found CAP to be relatively light bodied with a thin mouth feel, and a light carbonation typical of the style. Overall, a very nice porter base, but Trafalgar really needs to heft up the "cognac-aged" elements and the body of the beer. As an experiment I resealed the empty jug using the attached stopper, and reopened it the next day giving the jug a sniff before I wrote this review. Absolutely magical cognac and oak aromas, giving an indication of what CAP could have been! Hopefully Trafalgar will make a few adjustments if they re-release this beer to realize its potential. At $8.95 per 500 ml jug I imagine that we are paying mainly for the packaging. There's enough promise here that I might try this beer again next year in the hope of some improvement.
Reviewed by GarthDanielson from Virginia
3.59/5 rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.59/5 rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured from a bottle into a shaker pint, the beer is a dark, ruby highlighted brown color with a filmy, light tan head. Nose of smoke, wood, char, bitter coffee, and chocolate. Smells very earthy. Flavors of roast and smoke, with a coffee backbone. Very light hints of booze and wood, with a char highlight. Smooth, but light and dry, too. Smokey and bitter finish, with a dry feel. Tasty, but lighter than I was expecting.
Aug 08, 2013Reviewed by peensteen from Canada (ON)
3.3/5 rDev +1.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
3.3/5 rDev +1.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Brownish colour with ruby coming through, ring of white head with some lace as well. Smell is fairly roasted, chocolate, a bit of vanilla and a suggestion of oak, there is a bit of a cognac/spirit presence but its fairly minimal, but there is a nice chocolatey-vanilla thing going on here. Taste is not as nice as the nose roasty with a coffee bean flavour and bitterness, touches of vanilla but the oak and cognac are basically non existent here. Medium carbonation and a fairly light body, watery at points as well. Some decent flavours here, but nothing worth coming back to but I basically expected that anyway.
Apr 09, 2013Reviewed by andrenaline from Canada (ON)
3.32/5 rDev +2.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
3.32/5 rDev +2.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Another treat courtesy of my in-laws...
A - Pours a dark ruby red, finger of head with little retention and no real lacing.
S - Nose is dominated by dark cocoa, hints of oak and leafy greens.
T - Flavour is dominated by the musty cocoa, dark chocolate, leafy greens, and dark caramel on the finish. The cognac is subtle and noticeable off the top, but is quickly overtaken by the porter flavours.
M - Medium bodied, smooth and a touch of dryness.
O - A surprisingly flavourful porter from what has been a consistently disappointing brewery. That being said, the cognac presence is almost non-existent and realistically shouldn't be advertised as such. Worth a try for a decent porter, but the sweet cognac flavours apparently missed the curtain call.
Mar 30, 2013A - Pours a dark ruby red, finger of head with little retention and no real lacing.
S - Nose is dominated by dark cocoa, hints of oak and leafy greens.
T - Flavour is dominated by the musty cocoa, dark chocolate, leafy greens, and dark caramel on the finish. The cognac is subtle and noticeable off the top, but is quickly overtaken by the porter flavours.
M - Medium bodied, smooth and a touch of dryness.
O - A surprisingly flavourful porter from what has been a consistently disappointing brewery. That being said, the cognac presence is almost non-existent and realistically shouldn't be advertised as such. Worth a try for a decent porter, but the sweet cognac flavours apparently missed the curtain call.
Reviewed by Kremlock from Canada (ON)
3.73/5 rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
3.73/5 rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
A: Deep ruby colour with orange hues. pours a 1/4 inch head that settles to a thin film.
S: Roasted malt, hint of alcohol, hint of smokiness.
T: Roasted malts, some prune, hint of smoke.
M: Well carbonated (low end), roasted feel on the palate, low-med body.
O: Impressed for trafalgar by far. This is a good porter by all accounts. Can't taste cognac but there are hints of smoke/wood.
Mar 27, 2013S: Roasted malt, hint of alcohol, hint of smokiness.
T: Roasted malts, some prune, hint of smoke.
M: Well carbonated (low end), roasted feel on the palate, low-med body.
O: Impressed for trafalgar by far. This is a good porter by all accounts. Can't taste cognac but there are hints of smoke/wood.
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)
3.05/5 rDev -5.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
3.05/5 rDev -5.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
Bottle: Poured a clear dark color porter with a large dirty white foamy head with average retention and minimal lacing. Aroma consists of light dry roasted malt with some light sweet notes and very subtle cognac notes. Taste is a mix between light dry roasted notes with light residual sugar notes and a vanilla and liquor. Body is indeed too thin for style with medium carbonation. Not as bad as expected but not as great either.
Feb 28, 2013Reviewed by liamt07 from Canada (ON)
3.64/5 rDev +12.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.64/5 rDev +12.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
500ml ceramic swingtop from the LCBO. "A unique brew for discriminating palates."
Deep brown, with some sparse khaki bubbles for a head. Light retention and a whisp of lace. Nose of chocolate, some roast, vanilla and even a bit of oak. Maybe a smidgen of spirit character. Taste has a touch of sour roast initially, but that initially disappears into a lightly buttery, toasty malt with some chocolate and a touch of oak. Slightly sweet but a decent amount of balance. Medium low carbonation, pretty thin in terms of feel. Surprisingly drinkable. All in all not a terrible beer, but where's dat cognac at?
Feb 28, 2013Deep brown, with some sparse khaki bubbles for a head. Light retention and a whisp of lace. Nose of chocolate, some roast, vanilla and even a bit of oak. Maybe a smidgen of spirit character. Taste has a touch of sour roast initially, but that initially disappears into a lightly buttery, toasty malt with some chocolate and a touch of oak. Slightly sweet but a decent amount of balance. Medium low carbonation, pretty thin in terms of feel. Surprisingly drinkable. All in all not a terrible beer, but where's dat cognac at?
Reviewed by ThinkAgain from Canada (ON)
2.72/5 rDev -16%
look: 2.25 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 3
2.72/5 rDev -16%
look: 2.25 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 3
Pours a watery brown with very little head. The smell is slightly sweet on the nose but hardly an appetizing aroma. On the taste, a slight woody and sweet taste but dissipates quickly on the back of the tongue. It has a very watery mouth feel and was unimpressed. Overall a below average beer and was hoping for a lot more with this style of brew.
Jan 14, 2013
Trafalgar Cognac Aged Porter from All or Nothing Brewhouse
Beer rating:
79 out of
100 with
18 ratings
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