Orkney Porter
Swannay Brewery

June 2010: 275 ml nip bottle, vintage 2009, thanks to my beerpal Olav who brought it home from the Orkneys. ABV is 9.0%. Black colour, dark brown in the highlights, big to moderate tan head, some lacing. Lovely aroma of dark malts, molasses, oak and dark dried fruits, hints of old sherry. The flavour has roasty coffee notes, also notes of malts and molasses (medium sweetness) and liquorice, with a hoppy and roasty bitterness in the finish. Solid stuff.

A little old, dry and thin but still very drinkable, a bit sweet. Private buying club, no head just like a cask should.

A-Dark black with a red brown Hugh and a light Cappuccino brown head
S-Aromas of spice and ripe raisin, molasses, mainly with elements of brown sugar
M-Medium to full body with a nice thick mouth feel, and low in the carbonation
T-A ton of dark caramel malt, with a burnt element and heavy molasses flavour
O-I quite enjoyed this beer as a satisfying, thick, resinous, sweet comfort beer during the winter

Medium: Capped + chalice glass. (aged 6 months)
Opacity: Almost opaque.
Color: Deep dark brown with a faint copper hue.
Head: Slightly creamy and bubbly brown 1 finger.
Legs: Not much but potent lacing with average swirl reaction.
Smell: Cherries/Plums/Vanilla/Brown sugar.
Taste: Dark grains/Raisins/Smoke/Coffee.
Feel: Dark esters/Roasted/Rauch/Mild dryness.
Body: Light to medium creamy, quite silky and smooth.
Carbonation: Soft prickly.
Overall: High quality craft. Very rich porter that feels similar to a barley wine having a strong fruit profile. Aged well in the cellar and the alcohol is well hidden giving some nice warmth. Probably a bit overly sugary and syrupy for a porter.

Visual 5.5/10 - Flavors 8/10 - Sensations 8.5/10 - Balance 7/10 -
Freshness 3/10 - Intensity 7.5/10 - Complexity 8/10 - Appreciation 8/10

 

BOTTLE: 330ml. Brown glass. Unbranded black pry-off crown cap. Appealing understated black & white label design. Acquired at Appellation Wines in Edinburgh. Vintage 2013 (per the neck).

9% ABV.Reviewed live as a porter per the label and name. Expectations are fairly high given this beer's reputation. Served cold into a pilsner glass and allowed to warm over the course of consumption.

No bubble show forms as it's poured.

HEAD: Khaki. Soft-looking, creamy, smooth, and even, with a nice consistency and complexion. Retention is above average for the high ABV - ~3 minutes. Leaves no lacing on the sides of the glass as it recedes.

BODY: Predictably, it's an opaque black. Dark, though not a jet or ink black. No yeast is visible within.

Appears aptly carbonated. Looks like a nice porter. I'm looking forward to drinking it. :)

AROMA: Lovely. It's a soft marshmallowy aroma comprised of chocolate malts, dark malts, mellow dark bread, cream, seemingly lactose sugar, and a subtle edge of faint roast that sets off the sweetness brilliantly.

Sweetness seems perfectly dialed in. This aroma suggests an impeccably balanced classic porter. Aromatic intensity is above average.

TASTE: There's a blip of an earthy undertone up front, which isn't ideal, but it does hint at a coffee presence that never materializes. Roasted barley is downplayed to its detriment. But the mellow chocolate malt and dark malt backbone is nothing short of perfect for a porter, and the cream plays into that nicely. Hints of an almost dunkel lager-esque brown bread character lend it an interesting characteristic, though I'm not sure it quite fits. Subtle fig and plum notes are as faint as ever, but play well with the chocolate without dragging the porter down into overcaramelized territory.

Certainly, more of a coffee roast would help improve this, as would more complexity (e.g. in the form of vanilla bean, coconut, cacao nibs, et al.). But the beer is balanced overall, and the marshmallow sets off the whole flavour profile in an interesting way. In any case, it's a well built beer in its style, and is impressively approachable for its high ABV. I rather like it.

TEXTURE: Aptly medium-bodied with a luscious soft feel on the palate and a subtle coarseness and dryness to it that flirts with more of a stout-like texture. Aptly thick and never too syrupy. Unfortunately, it is a bit overcarbonated, but that will benefit it for cellaring.

This texture does accentuate some of the better notes from the flavour profile, but it fails to really elevate the beer as a whole. An even softer more delicate feel coupled with a silky velvety texture would improve this mouthfeel. Well-executed in general terms, though.

OVERALL: While there's not a marriage of texture and taste and the build never seems truly gestalt, this is a cohesive balanced porter that improves on the classic chocolate and dark malt flavour of the style with nuanced notes of dark fruit and breadiness. Well worth trying, and a beer that gets me excited to try the rest of Highland Brewing's line - especially the barrel aged variant of this. Damn drinkable for 9% ABV, and one of the finer widely available Scottish porters I've come across in Edinburgh. Recommended.

High B- (3.49)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

bottle into a tulip glass. Pour is dark balck with a nice tan head, slow dissipation and a wonderful lacing, good film as well, looks great.

S - rich dark malt and liquorice notes, mildly earthy and woody as well, some subtle balancing bitterness, dark roasted coffee beans. Plummy and fruity, rich dark malts with a mild roasty character, some apple, really solid.

T - is semisweet chocolate, very creamy, with a subtle caramel orange coming after, dry finish, mild earthy spice, slight cocoa. Very full. Dark roast coffee and chocolate sweetness but balance is perfect, some subtle lemon and even plummy notes, figs just a excellent tasty brew that has a great flavour. Dry and fully malty finish.

M - is big and creamy, rich maltiness, moderate soft carbonation and very little perceptible alcohol which makes for a luscious rich beer. Lovely.

Really nice and surprisingly easy-drinking. This makes a strong case for the amped up porter, with a seriously rich but balanced flavour, hard to find faults here, very tasty beer with a mild phenolic kick on the finish, nice sipper that s pleasing, worth trying for sure.

 

330ml bottle from Peckhams, Aberdeen (£3.35):
Dark ruby, almost pitch black with a pinky sized, bubbly, tan head that slowly reduces in size to a thick looking lacing. A nice appearance and a better head than I was expecting.

Strong with rich and alcohol laced aroma that is a combination of rich, dark malts and some dark chocolate with an almost red wine like smell following this. There is some raisin, cranberry and plums with a nice alcohol kick and perhaps some dates and figs too.

Boozy, warming alcohol taste to begin that is backed up with a lot of sweetness and darker fruits, notably it is the figs and plums that seem to come through the most here. There is also a very rich, dark, roasted malt taste and some sweet caramel malts and a hint of cherry.

Sweet & rich with a nice boozy feel to the beer and a smooth, full bodied mouthfeel. This one is probably these easiest going 9% beer you will find, the alcohol is noticeable but not overdone & the balance is good.

One of the best I have ever tried. Dangerously easy to drink, considering it is a 9% abv. it goes down an absolute treat. I could drink this one all night although the alcohol content tells me that might not be the best ideas.

 

Thanks much to Craig for the trade. Opened in celebration of the completion of a long weekend and an improved sense of smell. Bottle says vintage 2011.

Poured into a snifter and a tulip glass from bottle. Fizzy head. Dark reddish brown color.

Smell is beery, grainy, toasty. Molasses. Maybe a little hint of anise.

First sip is much sweeter than I expected, then finishes dry and astringent. There is a tart fruit component -- like tart dry cherries. Sometimes we expect a porter to be smoky, but this one isn't at all. Medium bodied, like a brown ale with a surprisingly acidic finish.

Not what I expect from something called "porter" -- this is more medium than dark. Very good though. Would buy again (if we could).