Chocolate Porter
West Sixth Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

Cask conditioned, proper pour, cellar temperature? Yes please! The West Sixth Pay It Forward Porter gets a luscious facelift as they kick off their "Firkin Thursdays" series in a big way! The inaugural cask ale takes the ever classy American-style porter and introduces copious amounts of cocoa nibs and is then conditioned in the small wooden casks for a resulting creamy, dry, and sultury session.

Lightly carbonated, the light tanish foam rises from the dark brown beer underneath. The creamy froth laces the glass and the beer much like espresso creme. Lightly hazed, the beer foregoes the desire for clearer highlights in favor of the full appreciation of taste to come. It's simply a manly looking ale.

Cocoa is evident in the very first visit to the glass. Upon the first whiff, it's like opening a fresh can of cocoa powder. But unlike cocoa powder, the beer introduces an accompaniment of aromas like strong roasted coffee, walnuts, lightly scorched toffee, and malted milkshakes. But the threat of sweetness stays at bay, instead its the other more deeply caramelized notes that command the nose.

The dry toasty taste of bold coffee (not quite espresso), charred toast, and cocoa powder set the stage while supportive toffee and molasses sweetens the toast bitterness and rounds out the sharper edges of astringency to the cocoa and coffee taste. Walnut and the starch of whipping cream weave the sweetness and toast together and implies the taste of bittersweet chocolate.

Medium bodied, the beer does the magical thing that all well-made cask ales do- the beer coats the palate with a lush velvety texture without feeling heavy. It's somewhat milky mouthfeel translates to a high rate of drinkability and a sultry-dry powdery finish of chocolate.

The Firkin Thrusdays are going to be a must-try if all of them portray the masterful artistry and quality shown here.