...Zest Please
Mikkeller ApS

I really enjoyed this beer. Had it on draft into a snifter at a local cheese steak joint that has good beer.

Beautiful beer with a dark brown body capped with a creamy brown head with great lacing. Nice berry and dark chocolate smell and taste. Creamy smooth feel. One of those porters that manages to be comforting and refreshing at the same time!

 

Poured into a Seattle Beer Week pint glass. Pours nearly pitch black, opaque in the glass, with a nice two finger dark khaki head with good retention and lots of light lacing. Aroma of dark toasted malt and orange zest; almost exactly as advertised. Maybe a hint of cocoa in there. Flavor is dark toasted malt with light char, milk chocolate and orange. Finishes with bitter chocolate and light orange. Medium bodied with light creaminess. This turned out better than I expected. I'm gravitating away from tart fruit flavors in porters and stouts, they just do not sit well on my palate. The orange in this is light and the chocolate notes are strong enough that this is reminiscent of those holiday orange chocolates and that carries this through. The base porter is a good English porter style. After an initial hesitancy with the flavor, this really grew on me. I think the porter base works well with the light orange notes. Interesting and flavorful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poured from a 330 ml bottle into a tulip.

A: Pours a deep, rich dark chocolate, almost black. Has a thick light brown head that maintains beautifully and laces perfectly. A beautiful beer.

S: Toasted malt notes with a little burnt orange and some coffee.. Smells a little boozey for a 7% ABV.

T: Roasty and toasty with bittersweet chocolate and a touch of toffee on the end. A tiny bit of orange settles on the palate, but not much.

M: Smooth and creamy with little carbonation coming through. The flavors settle thickly on the tongue.

O: Big and rich with lots of toast, I was waiting on some orange zest to come out more. The bittersweet chocolate seems to be the flavor that lingers the most. I found it a porter that was pleasant to drink, although I'm not eager to have another. You tempted me with orange and I didn't get it.

 

not all that different from the orange yuzu glad i said porter, maybe the yuzu fruit didnt do all that much in that one, or maybe the orange is ramped up here, more acidic, but the porter sure tastes similar. i like it though, like a chocolate covered orange with dark chocolate. the beer is deeply black with an airy tan head, and a nose of bitter orange peel. almost no sweetness in the taste at all, surprising for an orange flavor to still be so forward without it, and a nice roast and coffee character to the porter. not as thick as it looks like it should be, but not thin either, smooth in feel and easy drinking, really pleasant vibe to this as an after dinner beverage. the orange is fresh and zesty, juicy, acidic, and very morning feeling to me. it cuts through all the dark malt just enough, but its beer way before its fruit beer, and i like that a lot, especially in a dark one. its good beer, really good beer, and cheaper than a lot of the others mikkeller does, but its odd to have it be so similar to the orange yuzu, his stuff is usually all so original...

BOTTLE: Brown glass. 11.2 fl oz. Pry-off crown cap. Appealing label art. Best before: 15/04/17.

Served cold into a snifter and allowed to warm over the course of consumption. Expectations are high given the brewer(y), premise, and style.

7.0% ABV. Imported b the Shelton Bastards.

No bubble show forms as it's poured.

HEAD: About 3cm wide. Khaki colour. Creamy and soft-looking. Coating and thick. Consistency is even and appealing. Nice complexion. Retention is good - about 6 minutes.

BODY: Opaque solid black. No yeast particulate or hop sediment is visible within.

It's a nice looking porter, but doesn't stand out with any unique or special characteristics.

AROMA: Roasted barley, dark malts, chocolate malts, cream, and milk chocolate. I find no orange zest, nor do I find any yeast, hop character, or booze. Suggests a balanced porter with an impressive roasted barley presence.

Aromatic intensity is average.

TASTE: Dark malts, chocolate malts, roasted barley, cream, a hint of orange, and charred sugars. Decently balanced, but a bit too bitter for a porter. Any orange zest is quite reticent.

Average flavour duration, intensity, and depth. I like it, but it leaves a lot to be desired.

TEXTURE: Somewhat coarse, though that's balanced by some soft creaminess. Walks the line between dry and wet. Overcarbonated. Full-bodied.

This texture suits the flavour profile nicely, but doesn't elevate the beer as a whole or accentuate specific notes.

OVERALL: A clash of dessert porter and stout-like roast, ...Zest Please falls short of its lofty aims but remains a drinkable enjoyable beer - even if it never delivers the promised orange zest. I wouldn't buy it again at its American price point, but it's worth trying and won't disappoint.

Low B-