Double Barrel Derivation - Noboleis Blanton’s Port (2022)
Side Project Brewing

2022 vintage; consumed on 4/3/2025

Pours an immense sludge, oily black and glossy in appearance; a barely-there, deep mocha foam fades as quickly as it appears, leaving little beyond a blank surface and a modest array of legs trickling down the walls of the glass.

Aromas waft port inflection through oaky tannins against accents of leather and mushy plum; caramels are interwoven while heavy char builds in the backdrop.

Taste opens with milk chocolate meeting ample char underscored by a dark cacao subtext; a tinge of smoke crossed the mid-palate into peaks of semi-sticky port through the back end of the profile.

Mouthfeel espouses a thick body with minimal carbonation, leaving silky texturing lingering to an underlying roastiness; a semi-chewy char settles through the swallow.

Deep saturation of port threads inform a staunch Side Project oakiness as roast abounds and dark fruit contrasts; respectably deft barrel presence dominates.

 

The nose is a phenomenal lead; whiskey staves, leather, smoke, & Port wine. Palate is good but relatively short in its finish. Drying oak, baking cocoa, & hints of chocolate cherry. Mildly syrupy, and warming all the way down. Very good.

poured from a 375mL bottle into an oversized snifter. pours dark brown but gathers in the glass near black. no foam. hardly any bubbles. digging the nose on this one as it’s equal parts bourbon, port and chocolate. more chocolate on the taste with a heavy dark fruit forward port finish. full mouthfeel. kind of expected to like this a little more but still damn tasty.