Hanley's Baltic Porter
Dry Dock Brewing Co.

 

On tap the other night at the Rackhouse pub here in Denver. This one wasn't listed in the beer menu, but our waitress mentioned it, and after tasting it, I had to order a glass. This one poured a dark brown, nearly black color with small lingering brown head. Aromas of roasted malt, dark chocolate, plums, coffee and caramel. On the palate, dark chocolate, roasted malt, vanilla and coffee. Very full bodied, very drinkable and very, very good.

Poured from growler into Dry Dock tulip. Beer was pitch black, with a one-finger, dark brown head. Slow, soft carbonation and moderate lacing around the glass.

Aroma was dark ripe fruits (raisins, plums and cherries), toffee, chocolate and coffee.

Taste was coffee, anise, chocolate and bitter hops throughout.

Mouthfeel is thick and full. Moderately boozy with a nice bitter finish.

Another fantastic offering from the Dry Dock crew. I hope they keep this one around for a while. I miss their Imperial Stout and this seems to be brewed along those lines.

I'll just start this review with a statement:
If you like big stouts/porters and you live in the Denver area, this is something you should seek out while you can.
Served in a DD tulip snifter. Arrives a murky black color with 1/4" of chocolate brown foam on the top. The walls of the glass show a pretty thick coating wherever this touches.
The smell, while starting with a roasty element, reveals some strong fruit flavors. Non-dried grapes and dates come out right away. Then you start to pick out more dried fruit flavors like raisins, prunes, etc.
The flavor profile differs from the nose in that you definitely pick up more chocolate notes along with candied dried fruit. Hops are there to add a hint of earthiness and keep things from being too sweet. There's a little bit of booziness, but it's less than the strength would have you thinking.
Mouthfeel is justifiably thick, but not as thick as most imperial stouts or as slick as many baltic porters I've had.
The sheer potency of this beer limits how many you can have without being tipsy, but the flavor profile doesn't. Other than the sheer potency of the beer, there's no reason I wouldn't like to have several of these.
Wow...this starts 2010 off right. One of the best big beers I've had in years. A big winner.

EDIT: This has shown up a few other times throughout the year (usually special occasions) and it's typically gone pretty quickly. I'd love to see this more often as I honestly think it's world-class. It's a bit sweeter and fruitier than their RIS, which is a bit similar.