Vanilla Cream Porter
Max's Fanno Creek Brew Pub

Poured on tap at Henry's on 12th in Portland.

Looks decent though has a remarkable absence of any head. Not much going on with the nose, some simple dark notes that are rather ambiguous. On the palate the beer is just awful. The vanilla seems rather fake, like a cheap imitation vanilla latte from McDonalds. This is not what beer should taste like. The palate is rather thin for something with such a cloying flavor. Pretty awful, even the bartender said everyone hates it.

On tap at Henry's Tavern in downtown PDX. From notes.

A: Pours a murky brown body with a limpid half-finger of off-white head. Retention is moderate and there is no lacing down the glass.

S: Vanilla, brown sugar, chocolate, coffee. Pretty well-blended, moderately pungent. I'm pleased by how restrained this is given some atrocious vanilla bombs I've had.

T: Cocoa and vanilla fight it out for the first taste on the tongue, and dominate throughout the swig. The mid-taste sees a small entry of coffee, and the finish is roastier than the smell led me to believe. Solid flavors, but altogether a bit watery and weak.

M: Light-medium bodied, low carbonation. Malty finish.

D: To be honest I didn't even finish the glass... It's not that it's an awful beer, but it's kind of underwhelming and unremarkable.

Consumed at Henry's 12th street tavern

A: dark cherry reds and orange colors hang around the rim of the glass. Below the hue is prominently dusty brown with some darker complexions. It was served headless with a fizzy ring left hugging the glass

S: smells are mostly black malts, dry chocolate, and some nice vanilla wafts. The usual nostril discrepancies arise as I sit at the bar, cleaning solution and foods are in the air. Hard to gather any real depth to the smell. Maybe a hint of brown sugar? In any event, smells a bit light and just of vanilla

T: most of the flavors are dusted with cocoa powder and fused with crushed vanilla beans, some real nice vanilla bean flavors are working. Malts are chunky and blackened and give base to the beer. It is not a stretch to describe this beer as rich and sweet. However it maintains control and is balanced pretty well

M: the body has some good points to it. It is a little sticky and with some bottom end, I would say a medium feel that is pretty glassy. Carbonation seems right for a porter, maybe a touch strong

D: nice flavors and a little on the sweet side, which makes things even better for my liking

Does this beer smell and taste modestly spoiled, or is that just the more racy elements of the Mexican vanilla bean? I’m not convinced it’s the vanilla. But on the generous assumption that the vanilla isn’t masking a beer past its prime, I’ll comment that the beer, while challenging to interpret, does have its moments. The vanilla flavor is prominent though perhaps clumsy, making this a less successful experiment than the Belgian IPA or the Belgian Stout.

But it can be appreciated during its moments of triumph as a workable recipe that may have just sat too long in the tap line. This beer is nothing like its predecessor that I used to drink at Tuck’s. Lets hope that a potential for inconsistency may be averted next time.