Wine Barrel Brown Porter
Town Hall Brewery

Appearance: Deep, clear burgandy tone. The slightly stained white head recedes quickly, leaving a uniform rimming behind. This collar leaves an adequate amount of lace in it's wake.

Aroma: Sweet red wine. Roasted malts. Vanilla. Dusty, chalky cocoa.

Taste: Chocolate covered raspberries come to mind. It's got a little bit of a tannic bite to it. Barrrel derived I would guess. Some acidity is noted. The sweet chocolate/tart fruit supplies a nice little contrast on the tongue.

Mouthfeel: Very lightly carbonated. Which works for this beer. Body is light-medium. Alcohol is basically non-existent on the buds.

Drinkability: This is a unique little experiment. Definitely not one of my favorite Barrel Beers from Town Hall, but certainly still good... and drinkable.

The brown porter from earlier this year, aged in a red wine barrel, released on October 24, 2005....I enoyed from a growler...

Dense brown body, nearly opaque, lush cocoa-brown head...

Fantastic aroma...sweetness and fresh mingle with roasty components...the wine character has subsumed most, if not all the porter-y characters in the nose, but it's a wonderful blend, all told, rich and complex, very heady and rewarding...

This is begun again in the flavor, with the berries and grapes fully in charge of the taste, taking over the palate, the porter mainly as base or ballast. A remarkable combination, one I like, maybe better than the wine stouts they'd offered here in the past, the lighter body of the porter making for easier drinking, considered the full flavor of the barrel's effect.

So good I nearly drank the whole thing Monday night, but, stopped halfway...I write this Tuesday afternoon, and will save the remainder as a tasty nightcap for tonight...

Happy 8th Anniversary, Town Hall!