Dark Brewed Porter
Yuengling Brewery

 

This is a misunderstood porter that predates trendy craft beer silliness by nearly two centuries. This porter has been brewed since 1829 and is America's oldest brew. It, like all Yuengling beers, is sessionable, balanced, and affordable. Most upscale craft porters are malt bombs with abvs that are just too high imo. They are "once in a while" one and done beers. This delicious lager-like porter is dialed down in the best possible way. Want a porter as your daily drinker? This is it. Brilliant, tragically underrated, sessionable, historical important brew offered at a compelling price. It hits all the notes you'd expect from its style, except it doesn't punch you in the face. Great stuff.

Flavourful and malty. Has the notes the black and tan are missing.

Had a post tour 7 oz sample while visiting with Da Boss 9-25-25.

The chocolate notes in the malts were very prevalent initially, but as i sipped on the flavor started to fade. Still a quaffable beer and not a drain pour by any stretch.

One of the samples tasted after the Yuengling Brewery tour in Pottsville, PA

Beer is a very dark brown color. Mostly opaque.

Slightly roasted malt aroma.

An OK porter. Flavors of roasted, almost burnt malts. Slightly bitter.

Thinner consistency, low carbonation.

A very easy drink beer. Not world class but awesome to try right at the brewery…cheers!

 

 

Yuengling's porter is a lot better than I expected...

Picked this up as it was the last 12-pack at the store I buy when in Western PA. I'm glad I did. The brew itself sits somewhere between the Yuengling's Lager and their Black and Tan - quite tasty actually. Great looking beer with a solid malty scent, it's mouthfeel is medium-bodied and very crisp, with a taste that is muted when compared to other porters I have had. Overall, I found it to be very solid.

Average pour, plenty of carbonation with very little lacing. Slight smell of dark nuts and rye bread. Light in flavor. Cola, dark bread, with a terrible sour aftertaste. Thin watery mouthfeel. I can honestly say after tasting many porters over the years this one is my least favorite. Pretty much my same sentiment with all of the Yuengling products. Yuengling has a pretty good marketing team but my opinion is all of their beer tastes horrible.

Another very drinkable beer from Yuengling. A nice mellow slightly caramel-y, slightly nutty, subtle flavor: this beer is best consumed around 50 degrees F. A pleasant break from intense flavors and high abv. This one is for some reason not widely available--comes only in 12 packs of bottles. If it's in your area, give it a try.

Burned charcoal wood beer.

12 oz bottle
Bottle Date: ???
Glassware: 12-oz nonic pint glass
Temp at Pour: mid to upper 40's F


Look:
Very dark brown bordering on black. Huge 2-3 finger creamy tan head that dissipates to a consistent cover. This cover lasts through some drinking, but it does then begin to break up. Lacing is OK.

Smell:
Light scents of over-toasted dark bread and some mildly roasted grains, including roasted corn. Hints of bakers chocolate.

Taste:
Very similar to the nose. Mild inoffensive light roast and toasted bread with some baker's chocolate. Also some cola. No bitterness can be detected other than the roast.

Feel:
Smooth and creamy. Body is a bit thin, especially for a porter.

Overall:
A simple but tasty and very easy-drinking beer. The lighter body means that this is not just a cold-weather beer. I have had this many, many times; it was the 1st non-yellow-fizzy beer that I ever drank and was an early favorite. I come back to it now and again for nostalgia and a nice change of pace. It isn't the best porter that you'll ever have and it won't knock your socks off. But that's not what it's about. It's simple, quaffable, and tasty. And it's under $2 a bottle. (I paid $1.50 plus tax for this particular bottle)

This is my favorite beer that is brewed by Yuengling and has been for many a year.
(I haven't had Yuengling's Hershey Chocolate Porter as of yet)

Out of the bottle, this certainly looks the part, dark with ruby glints, some color to the head.

On the nose: malt, a bit of sweetness. The head vanishes rather quickly, like a freshly poured Pepsi, leaving no remains. Not a good sign...

Tastes more "porter-like" than "porter". No depth or richness, far more hoppy than any English porter, but the hops level fits the idea of "American Porter" well. Mouthfeel is exactly the same as their lager, or any megabrewery lager. Disappointing. Thin. The hops finish kills any of the malt semi-sweetness you get in a good English porter, and the lack of body doesn't inspire repeated pours. Since Anchor Porter is almost as easily available locally, this falls by the wayside, even as a cheap sixer, and the Anchor is a fine American interpretation of porter, and a worthwhile American beer.

Overall, I guarantee your local convenience or grocery store has something more worthwhile than this on the shelves, one of those widget cans of Bass or Tetley's would do the trick, and be closer to the idea of "porter" than this...or just stock up on Taddy Porter if you want the real thing.

This was the go-to porter before the craft beer revolution. It was always a favorite of mine. However there are so many better options now. Still, a solid porter…

 

 

Pours mahogany with a 1/2" tan head, which dissipates. Light lacing.

Aroma is a bit muted: Light roastiness, caramel.

Taste is caramel, light roast malt, slight astringency.

Thin bodied, light carbonation. Dry finish.

Thin bodied for a porter, but for the price, decent.