London Porter - Paddock Wood Brewing Co.

IllNate

British Columbia (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a nice dark brown, almost black. Amber highlights. Good color for a porter. Small amount of head, decent retention.

S - Smells of roasted malts, mostly coffee and caramel. Bit of peat smoke I think.

T - Taste follows with roasty coffee and caramel dominating. A bit nutty as well.

M - Mouthfeel is good, a bit on the thin side, but good. Nice and smooth.

D - Good here as well, could drink quite a few.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2011 00:59:33 | More by IllNate

LampertLand

British Columbia (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Paddock Wood Brewing 'London Porter' @ 5.2% , originally tried on tap @ GCBF/12 , this review from a 6pack of 335 ml bottles purchased for $13

A-pour is a dark brown , ruby red highlights with a small tan head leaving a sticky lace along the pint glass after every sip

S-roasted barley & malt , hint of chocolate

T-smooth chocolate malt thickness , some bitterness at the end

MF-low mild carbonation , medium bodied , ok on the palate

Ov-ok/good beer , not my fav but one of Canada's better Porter 6pack offerings

sampled alongside Deschutes 'Black Butte' , Mill St. 'Coffee Porter'
& Powell St. 'Dive Bomber' Porter

prost LampertLand

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2013 21:02:58 | More by LampertLand

Noxious26

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.43/5  rDev -8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

355 ml brown bottle with pry off cap poured in a pint glass. Part of a big box o beer variety 12 pack.

Dark borwn, almost black, cola like with a thin beige cap. No lacing to speak of.

Big malty aroma. Chocolate, vanilla, woody maly scents.

Robust roasted malts through and through. Hints if sweetness (chocolate).

Medium bodied and quite drinkable.

This won't knock your socks off but it's very steady and true to style.

Serving type: bottle

03-07-2013 03:08:05 | More by Noxious26

schnarr84

Alberta (Canada)

4/5  rDev +7.2%

12-24-2012 00:40:13 | More by schnarr84

kjyost

Manitoba (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle acquired at the MLCC (Osborne) from a returned private order. Served at ~4-5C into a beer mug.

Pours a deep, dark brown with hints of brown around the edges. A nice tan head leaves minimal lacing. The nose has great notes of cocoa and coffee from the roasted malts, yet the body evidences little of that giving way more to molasses, yet lighter... Nice body that coast the mouth well. Enjoyable, especially as I am not one who really knows what makes a porter different than a stout nor is it a beer I normally reach for. This seemed thicker and had more character in the beer than a dry stout.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2012 02:59:14 | More by kjyost

Jeffo

Netherlands

3.1/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Bottle from kjyost in a recent trade. Cheers man!

From a bottle into a snifter

APPEARANCE: Pours a small, looser looking, light tan head with good retention. Clear bistre brown body with lower levels of carbonatin evident. Head fades to a splotchy wisp and ring but leaves no lacing down the glass.

SMELL: Milder nose of roasted and chocolate malts, sweet cream and a hint of gram cracker. Nice stuff, but a touch too mild to be noteworthy.

TASTE: Milder flavors of roasted malts, chocolate malts, and some caramel sweetness. A mild and dry finish of roasted and chocolate bitterness, and notes of sweet cream. Fine, but nothing overly exciting.

PALATE: Medium body and medium carbonation. Creamy enough on the palate, goes down fine and finishes relatively dry. A touch light for the style perhaps.

OVERALL: A completely average porter here. A pleasant drink, but nothing remarkable. Worth drinking if you see it out at a pub or something like that. I wouldn't turn it down. Thanks again for the beers kjyost. Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2012 19:19:33 | More by Jeffo

TheBeermin

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -6.2%

07-10-2012 02:00:54 | More by TheBeermin

Edgerrin32

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -6.2%

02-28-2012 03:36:27 | More by Edgerrin32

boyer20d

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3/5  rDev -19.6%

11-22-2011 19:15:22 | More by boyer20d

joemcgrath27

Alberta (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - deep near black, short tan head dissipated to a thin covering with some lacing
S - roasty, coffee, molasses, and a cola hint
T - roastiness and cola flavour up front, burnt sugars, cold pressed coffee, subtle bakers chocolate and subtle hop finish
M - smooth and light, crisp with a coffee bitter finish
O - extremely easy drinking porter with robust flavours, I will be purchasing this again

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2011 02:27:17 | More by joemcgrath27

andrenaline

Ontario (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours a dark ruby red colour, finger of mocha head with some retention and no real lacing.

S - Was expecting something a bit more bold, but fairly mild with dark chocolate notes, bit of sweet molasses and roasted almonds.

T - Quite nice on the tongue, much more flavourful than implied by the nose. The dark chocolate notes come through alongside some espresso and sweet milk chocolate. Surprisingly, it isn't overly bitter or dry and there's some leafy green hops also coming through.

M - Medium bodied ale that fills the tongue and goes down smooth.

O - Definitely one of the better offerings from Paddock Wood and easily sessionable. Solid sample of the style and quite enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2011 22:47:07 | More by andrenaline

CrazyMike

Alberta (Canada)

3.83/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Blackish brown appearance with minimal head. Smell is malty with toffee and chocolate.

Taste similar to the smell, very malty. Picked up roasted nuts, coffee, caramel and toffee as well. Light bodied, which threw me off after it's apperance, with medium-high carbonation. Aftertaste is sweet and bitter.

Not a bad porter, it is smooth and drinkable. A little generic for a porter, but good nonetheless.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2011 03:58:27 | More by CrazyMike

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

This beer pours a very dark brown colour, with slight ruby highlights, and a ton of billowy, thin, light beige head, which settles agonizingly slow, eventually leaving some amoebic lace around the glass. Like many a woman, this takes forever to get ready, but looks just fine when done. It smells of bitter coffee and chocolate, a fairly strong sour fruitiness, and earthy, leafy hops. The taste is lightly roasted malt, dry chocolate, mild nut butter, softened trail berries, and more earthy hops. The carbonation is damn near maniacal for the majority of this experience - providing way too much foam up front, and a fizziness to the first few sips, until it finally settles down to a dull hiss. By that time, the medium weight, creamy smooth body becomes apparent. It finishes mostly dry - nutty, coffee grounds, and noble hops.

I feel like there was a bit of a practical joke being played on me, like I needed a special passcode just to drink this beer. One CO2-saturated bottle of beer, I'll tell ya... Beyond that, this is a textbook old-school porter - dark, sour, malty, subtly fruity. When it finally deigns to come down the staircase, that is...

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2010 00:55:07 | More by biboergosum

pootz

Ontario (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle from trade:

Pours deep dark brown with an ample mocha cap.

Aromas of dark toffee and fudge, roasty malts woody hops. Decent body,

Toasty roasty malt flavor with a lightly sweet cocoa-mocha character, lightly bitter dry finish.

excellent Canadian version of a London porter

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2010 19:32:20 | More by pootz

EsoxLucius

Saskatchewan (Canada)

3.88/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

A: pours black with a cream tan head. the head vanishes too fast, though lacing sticks throughout.

S: mildly pleasant coffee and chocolate smell. very natural smelling, nothing offensive.

T: light roasted chocolate malt with a hint of bite and a slight wild berry taste in the finish.

M: a bit thin, but not bad... it's smooth and doesnt stick.

D: pleasing taste and smell + lighter mouth feel = goes down easy, really easy for a LP.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2010 05:05:37 | More by EsoxLucius

sammytag

Alberta (Canada)

4.18/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

a- Pours black. Yes!

s- chocolate and dark malts on the nose. Earthy & woody.

t- just stellar. layers of velvety smoothness with marshmallow, licorice root, coffee, cocoa and smoke. Rewarding bitter finish lingers for a very, very long time. Beautiful.

m- medium to full bodied. a bit more carbonation then I'd like in a porter, but, doesn't detract from the brew.

If there's one cririque I could make, it would be that this porter could be more diverse with the malts to give it a fuller flavour, though I guess for a porter it's just where it needs to be.

d- a dangerously drinkable brew. intense chocolate malt concentration, yet, I can't help thinking that this brew would KILL if it had more mid-range malts thrown in the mix (in my humble opinion). But still, an incredibly good beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2009 00:48:37 | More by sammytag

bobsy

Ontario (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dark brown pour with ruby highlights and an off-white head. Light roasty aroma - some coffee and chocolate. Quite strong coffee notes, along with dark chocolate and toasted notes. A light bitterness and warmth in the finish. All in all its a very pleasant roasted character and a solid take on a porter. Medium body and fairly low carbonation. The Paddock Wood brews I've had so far have impressed me... I think this is a decent brewery.

I think Alex sent me this one? Thanks Alex!

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2009 14:51:51 | More by bobsy

grub

Ontario (Canada)

3.55/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Viggo brought this one over. thanks eric!

12oz bottle. sampled feb 1/09.

pours deep brown, crystal clear with garnet highlights when held to the light. a small pale brown head forms, dropping quickly and leaving spotty lace.

aroma is good. very chocolaty. milk chocolate. bit of dark chocolate too. coffee. whole wheat bread and biscuit. bit of alcohol. anise. bit of vanilla. touch of caramel.

taste is nice. fairly low bitterness level, more dark chocolate than hops. bit of milk chocolate. coffee. wheat bread and a bit of biscuit. anise. slightly fruity. bit of earthy character too.

mouthfeel is ok. the medium-high carbonation is a bit much for the style. medium body.

drinkability is nice. the carbonation definitely takes something away from it, and it doesn't seem to fade quickly. thought the aroma was nice, but the taste a bit of a letdown. a decent porter, but nothing too special.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2009 21:15:52 | More by grub

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle, received from Voonder in a trade.

Pours a dark reddish brown, very clear in the light, thin off white head forms, drops to a thin ring around the glass, no real lacing, thin layer, decent retention, looks okay. Smell is sweet and caramelized, light bit of chocolate and roast, quite fruity, some berries, floral, brown sugar, biscuity, lightly malty, not bad. Taste is similar, some caramel and chocolate, light roast, strawberries and brown sugar, kind of milky - some lacto sweetness, smooth finish. Mouthfeel is light bodied with medium carbonation. Pretty light but easy to drink, not too bad of a porter. Thanks Alex!

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2009 21:02:39 | More by Viggo

demcorhip

Ontario (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

An absolutely stunning looking porter. Somewhat active, fine and persistent level of carbonation gave a huge, tightly whipped pale tan head with excellent rentention on a gentle pour. Black opaque body only allows some light through the edges of the glass that barely makes its way through the brown murky brew. Some big and sticky gobs of lace cling to the glass as i enjoy imbibing this tasty treat.

Creamy hazelnut and a touch of cocoa greet the nose. A hint of roasted malt, vanilla, and a mild yet pleasant decaying leafy hop aroma takes up the rear.

This is a wonderful example of a porter and somewhat underrated in my (not so?) humble opinion. Hazelnut and cocoa meet some roasted malts that offer up hints of char and anise. A light touch of esters, which hint at cherries and plums appear in the middle. Then the touch of roast appears then gives way to the bittering hops that make an appearance and balance out the rich and tasty malts.

A very nice porter. Almost medium in body with a nice, rich, smooth and creamy mouthfeel which is interrupted yet wonderfully complimented by the finely bubbling carbonation. Rich and tasty malts which range from hazelnut to a faint hint of char, as well as a nice touch of hops.

A very drinkable brew. The contrasting flavours work very well together and provide an enjoyable depth to this brew. Then again its also easy to just turn the brain off and live in the moment, the experience. This is something i would recommend highly to those interested in traditional versus robust porters, and will gladly drink again and again, i just have to drive 1000 miles to get some more one of these days.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2008 21:30:01 | More by demcorhip

papat444

Quebec (Canada)

3.73/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to presario for this one, part of his CanBIF package to me.

It's a bleak rainy day so why not go for a nice, comforting porter.

Poured from a 341ml. bottle.

Appearance: Pours a nice black body with a thick, persistant 3 finger head.

Smell: Burnt malt notes, roastedness, hints of chocolate.

Taste: Smooth & creamy, a bit on the light side. More subdued than the aroma.

Mouthfeel: Active carbonation (fresh tasting) with roasted malt and a dark chocolate finish. Very slight bitterness (coffee?).

Drinkability: Very well, alcohol is subdued & taste is on the light side.

Overall: A decent, well-balanced porter that is subdued but it works. A good pick.

Serving type: bottle

07-13-2008 19:45:52 | More by papat444

Proteus93

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Cola coloured with blood red highlights. Head diminished quickly, a light brown, not much left behind.

S: A nice roast malt with chocolate aromas. Pretty much exactly as the bottle describes of the brew.

T: Like the aroma, a moderately roasted malt - chocolate flavours, a slightly bitter finish.

M + D: Lightly carbonated, medium to heavier body. A little sticky, but alright. Not too bad, but about average. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2008 04:03:59 | More by Proteus93

BigBry

Alberta (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Was first available only as part of the 'Black and White' package, but now I see some singles floating around. Basic black label with yellow writing, as pictured. Enjoyed with a barbeque dinner.
Appearance is basically black, with only a thin ring of dark red around the glass when held to the light. Thick tan colored head sits on top of the liquid. Not alot of carbonation.
Aroma has lots of cocoa and coffee with some chocolate malt. Taste is roasted malt, slightly bitter like a strong coffee. Full flavored with slight bitter hop finish. Mouthfeel is not really too heavy, the low carbonation is well suited for the style. I like the drinkability, especially with a good meal.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2008 18:32:18 | More by BigBry

trevorwideman

Manitoba (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12oz bottle given to me by demcorhip, poured into a pint glass.

Vigorous pour yields about 2 inches of head on top of a tasty-looking black brew. Good head retention and nice sticky lace as well. Aroma is heavily of roasted malt with some burnt chocolate undertones. A light brown sugar sweetness balances. Simple but effective, and in keeping with the style.

Taste is full of roasted malt and cocoa with a light molasses sweetness. There's a hefty dose of lactic acidity to help balance things out. Great flavour, simple and straightforward and right on. Very light body but just enough carbonation. This is a session beer forsure and another great effort by Paddock Wood.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2008 03:40:53 | More by trevorwideman

MAB

Alberta (Canada)

3.45/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

An above average porter from an above average brewery.

Nice coffee-like aroma; looks good in a glass with its tan colored head.
Just what I like for the taste. The chocolate malt come through and the sweetness is offset by the roasted grain flavor. A bit of bitterness as well.
The mouthfeel is good but could have used some more carbonation in my opinion. I wouldn't say watery, but it is somewhat "thin", if that makes any sense. The alcohol helps to push some of the flavor forward, I think.

I prefer the "Bete Noire" stout that Paddock Wood also produces- those two beers are similar in a lot of ways. I always think of a porter as being a slightly thinner, slightly sweet stout, and that was the case here.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2008 20:26:56 | More by MAB