Mash Baltic Porter
Mash Brewing

Had on tap at the Local Taphouse on one of the hottest days of the year. Am I insane?

Pours a dark, dark brown with slight jaffa-orange tinge up to the light, mocha cream head that is nice and densely foamy but sinks quite quickly, leaving a modest crown behind. Lacing is nice and thick.

Nose is a nice rich, dark affair - lots of pleasantly dark chocolate, with some espresso notes and some spicy notes of aniseed. Almost has a bit of an ouzo character lingering behind thanks as well to a slight alcohol fragrance. But yeah, rich and chocolatey overall.

Taste is quite spicy and dark, a lot of licorice on there and a petroleum robustness to it. Has a sour flavour reminiscent of cooked asparagus, a fair espresso character and some bitter cocoa. Overall a bit lacking - actually a bit watery for the most part of the mid-palate. Palate resides mostly on the back, while finish is a bit light, with a whisper of burntness and a slight sour espresso flavour. Decent, but a bit underwhelming for a Baltic.

Mouthfeel is fairly slick, kind of watery in the mouth but a thicker, richer texture going down the throat.

Certainly drinkable - alcohol is well hidden and flavour is nice. The lack of robustness is a bit disappointing for the style but certainly doesn't harm its quaffability.

A - Pours a black black with a 3cm dense light brown head that hangs around for a long time.
Lots of lacing is left down the glass.
S - Strong chocolate and dark fruit aromas dominate.
T - Chocolate and dark fruit also coming through in the taste as well as some roasted, almost burnt coffee flavour.
M - Medium to full bodied with a medium carbonation.
A - A nice beer. Not something I could drink heaps of but I'd recommend trying it.