Plum Porter
Põhjala Brewery & Tap Room

Color is a sort of turbid reddish-brown, filling to dark brownish-black but retaining redder edges with a head of tan spit bubbles.

A little more tart than I'd want out of a porter, roasty as well, but tart to the point that it almost seems off.

this is real nice, pretty much all the beers these guys make are, and it was cool to encounter this out there in the wild, an unassuming little bottle with a cool design on the label but sort of understated overall, if you know you know with these guys i guess, and i am thankful to be in the know. not sure if this is a baltic porter or not, that part is unclear, but its imperial and its made with ripe plums, and its super interesting although also somewhat subtle, fruity in a generic sense that i dont quite think is plum specific, which is true in both aroma and flavor of this black, not particularly viscous, and moderately headed brew. it has a lot of grain depth, as so many of theirs do, licorice and smoke, a peppery aspect, a ton of roast, bitter even charred, cola, brandy, and coffee notes too. the fruit aspect seems tied up cohesively with the malt, together they come with raisin and prune and maybe black cherry and port wine as it warms a little, and the whole time im sort of surprised this isnt heavier, its not super full bodied for what it is, and by their standards, and its not all that alcoholic for being as strong as it is, even at temperature. the plums also seem to add some subtle tannins and maybe very late tang, i wouldnt call it tartness or anything, but it quickens the back end, surprisingly not sweet for what it is. some dark chocolate, tobacco, and even perceived oak although i do not believe this one is barrel aged. the ferment is mellow but also appreciable, not quite english to me but adding a bready aspect that comes through all the roast. way cool mix of flavors in this, dynamic and weirdly drinkable, even on a hot day in the summer. a sneakily prolific operation, always a treat to drink their stuff! very neat fruit integration here. i see they also make a plum barleywine, which i would love to try!