Pepin The Short Porter
Inland Empire Brewing Company

22 ounce bottle poured into a pint glass

A: Pours a dark brown with a tan colored head, lots of light comes through, some lacing, not seeing much carbonation, no head retention.

A: Coffee, hops, roasted malts, I'm getting lots of hops for a porter, no alcohol on the nose.

T: Hint of roasted malts and coffee, some hops, moderate amount of bitterness in the middle, very dry like roasted coffee dry, this beer has a very strange taste in it, not sure how to describe it but it really ruins the beer.

M: Light, very dry finish, low carbonation.

O: This is not good, it's a mess, needs more balanced flavors and the strange taste, like day old coffee needs to be ridden of, not a good beer.

 

 

Earthy roasted coffee smell. Bittersweet taste. Foams nice but head doesn't last. Adequate carbonation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

On tap at Inland Empire Brewing Company in Riverside, CA.

Pours an opaque black with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace slowly drip into the remaining beer on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt, burnt cocoa, cookie dough, and a slight funky aroma. Taste is much the same with cocoa and coffee flavors on the finish. There is a medium amount of roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer with some solid flavors.

22oz bottle courtesy of GT2. Thanks!

A: RIS worthy black color with a sludgy pour. Thick pock-marked mocha head recedes to thin lacing.

N: Dark chocolate - 60% range and ground espresso start the nose. Graham cracker, biscuit, and ground black pepper. Earth from the hops, I’m guessing. Hints of vanilla and dirt. Great start to this one.

T: Chili pepper, chocolate and coffee. Very earthen and dirty. Lactose here, and the vanilla and graham cracker. Which is great, except as this warms, an awful black olive flavor starts to dominate, knocking down the score substantially.

M: Soft on the palate and medium bodied. Alcohol is well hidden.

O: A beer better served cold, when it’s a 5.8% beer drinking like a 9% RIS with all the fudge and coffee flavors. Because when this warms, it becomes acidic and overwraught.

 

 

 

 

The Inland Empire brewing scene has risen in the past few years. Inland Empire Brewing is just one example of this phenom. 22 ounce bottle, on to the beer:

Glossy obsidian colored with a hint of brown at the edges. If only it could produce a head and not mere whisps of lace, this could be a pretty beer. Strong espresso-like aroma at first, which does lose some intensity. Chocolate liqueur and molasses make their way into the nose.

Tastes pretty good. Sweet molasses is the dominating force, caramel candies sit in back. Soft roasty notes. Gentle brush of hops. And it could have been better; this beer is vastly undercarbonated, which gives the beer a nearly flat, somewhat thin feeling. Nonetheless the overall package does hold enough interest.

Pepin "The Short" Porter is a mixed bag. In this one, you will need to take the bad (lack of foam and lace, undercarbonation) to be rewarded with the good (aroma and taste).

A bottle left over after GABF judging and given to me as a reward for my volunteer efforts. Pours a two finger brown head over a pitch liquid with a mahogany edgings when held to light. Smells roast, dry chocolate, grassy hops, figs, and salt.

Tastes roast, cherry, mild chocolate, and blackberry (like one gets from Northern Brewer hops)...but this is all penetrated by an over-cooked coffee astringency. Ashy burnt. Not very pleasant mouthfeel. Moderate carbonation and an aftertaste of grassy hops and dry roasty grains.

(Got in trade... crappy deal)
Pours a decent dark brown with a bit of nice head, but almost no lacing. Okay scent with some decent coffee aromas under roasted grains. Average taste; some decent roasted grains, a little coffee, but overall it was a bit thin and weak. Went down alright, but no real thickness to it; much too thin.

Bottle into glass at Eureka! Redlands.

A: Dark brown, translucent. A white head that disappears in seconds. No lacing

S: Chlorine, toasted malts, and chocolate. Wait chlorine? I think they didn't treat their water and the riverside water is now going to bite then in the butt. This is not going to go well.

T: Chlorine, the cruddy riverside tap water flavor dominates the palate. Any dark malt flavor is muted. Most disgusting porter I have ever tried.

M: The chlorine is affecting the mouthfeel and making it gritty. Not that pleasant.

O: This beer is utterly horrible. I'd prefer a BMC light lager over this. Porter is one of my favorite styles and the bad water treatment did this one in. I only drank half the bottle before walking away. IEBC needs to clean it up or their beers will end up as sewer water.