Friday, October 19

Homebrew VI: St. Paul Porter

Dark and pleasantly bitter...
A year into homebrewing and my sixth batch is perhaps the best yet: a dark and pleasantly bitter brew called St. Paul Porter from Northern Brewer. It's not as thick or roasty as my Irish Stout, but every bit as flavorful, with notes (to my tongue, at least) of strong coffee and dark chocolate, and the bite of dark berries. (You know, the little pinch the skins of blueberries give your tastebuds on the way down? That's the way the hops manifest themselves -- not bitter, just a bit of a bite, if you follow me.)

It's been ages since I've had my favorite of this style, Anchor Porter, but this is what I remember: a beer that is very flavorful, surprisingly smooth, and seemingly strong -- although this one weighs in at just 5.5% alcohol.

It's a perfect fall beer. I think I'll have another.

3 comments:

  1. My review of your porter would read much the same except that I would add that it's not as "dark" TASTING as it was dark LOOKING. It was actually very light. I could drink it all day. :)

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    1. Hmm. I hope you mean that it *looks* black as midnight on the River Styx, and only tastes like a moonless Halloween.

      I worry about "It was actually very light" -- because I've had "dark" beers (esp. dark lagers; Beck's Dark comes to mind) that are all color and little taste. I don't want to put words in your mouth, but I hope you meant "not heavy; easy to drink," in this case -- not light on flavor!

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  2. I DID mean "not heavy; easy to drink" but I wouldn't have used a semi-colon. I only use those for winky faces ;)

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