Baltic Porter
Founders Brewing Company

 

 

8 ball black with a sliver of a red edge and a thin, creamy tan ring.

Smell is coffee liqueur dosed with very prominent notes of blueberry and red licorice. There's a touch of roast and graham malt, but also cola.

Taste is very fruity, like a red Fruit Roll-Up and some blueberry, supported by much less cocoa-esque malt and bitter woody coffee. It's very odd and like no other Baltic Porter I've ever had.

A soft, round frothy body has a semi-dry, slightly hot finish.

 

32 ounce growler
Served in a becker glass

This beer pours black as coal and is topped with three inches of thick, creamy, mocha colored head that leaves a little lacing.

It has a rich roasted malt aroma with hints of coffee and dark chocolate.

It has a robust, roasted malt flavor. There are coffee and dark chocolate notes with a burnt toast finish.

Medium to full mouthfeel

It started out well with a lot of aroma and flavor. Then that burnt toast aftertaste began to build with each sip. It became very pronounced after awhile. It was a solid beer overall though.

 

On tap at the brewery. Jet black. Smells of butterscotch, roasted malt, chocolate. Tastes of strong roasted malt. Butterscotch again here. Not sure what that’s about. Sweet chocolate. Boozy. Very roasty. Medium heavy body. Not my favorite and not really a fan of that Butterscotch flavor.

 

Toasty, roasty and remarkably smooth, the brewers at Founders revive a classic dark beer flavor by capturing the less stout than stout option, but with the taste that's every bit as complex as its big brother but with a smooth creaminess for finesse and refinement.

Dark brown and resembling the hues of dark tree bark, the beer's creamy, mocha whipped meringue becomes the prelude to the toasty and roasty perfume of dark chocolate, dark roast coffee, burnt toast, deep caramel and a heavy burnt cream. Flavors follow with the same malty influence that's found in the nose but with an emphasis on the burnt nougat-like sugars and starches.

As the taste develops, the sweetness relaxes and the roasty, toasty, burnt edges start to bridge over to stout territory while remaining somewhat sweet to balance the cocoa, coffee and toast character. Broadly bitter hops take on a roast derived bitterness and is easily mistaken for coffee-like bite. But soft fruit nuances of red grape and currant comes as the beer warms, followed by the spice of aniseed while the alcohol trends rummy and warm.

But in this cleaner "baltic" taste, the beer exhibits mere nuances compared to authentic British versions, and the Founders variety offers a tepid softness that only lager yeast can provide. Its slow conditioning allows for a dry and elegant maltiness as the ale trails deep and long with roasted sweetness.

 

Got one on tap at Bier Baron, DC.
A bit too bitter for my liking, but the bitterness comes from the roasted malt. Little hoppiness. Good malt backbone though.

 

 

 

 

Pours a dark brown. Roasted malts, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, cream, vanilla, salted pretzels. Thick body and low carbonation.

Overall I liked this quite a bit; another good porter from Founders.

 

 

Had a 5 ounce pour at the Founder's Brewery Restaurant on my birthday in 2016 with my Dad and his wife Sherrie. Very unique flavor. Was the best surprise for my first visit to Founders.