Stoney Creek Vanilla Porter
Stoney Creek Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

Pours a nearly opaque black with about an inch of creamy dense head. Smells of vanilla, caramel, mocha and malt. Starts off tasting of sweet vanilla and finishes with both coffee and cocoa notes along with some mild bitterness. Feels slightly thin in the mouth but contains a fair amount of carbonation. A nice change up from the ordinary porter. One to try for all fans of the style.

Pours with average head, no lacing, color is black. If I didn't know better, I would swear there was a vanilla shake in my glass, with a slight bit of chocolate.

Tastes pretty good. Nothing offensive here, although I would prefer more malt to balance the vanilla. No roasted character or bitterness. The mouthfeel seems dull and lifeless. It is somewhat coating, with a long finish. Drinkability is ok.

Apperance: very dark and almost black in color, nice tan colored head that stuck around for a bit. Nice lacing and wonderful apperance overall.

Smell: a bit of a earthy smell and strong roasted chocolate malt smell with a touch of caramel.

Taste/Mouthfeel: a interesting smokey flavor is present (unique to say the least) but a sweet chocolate taste and very smooth going down. Very interesting taste overall...earthy, sweet and smokey (a beer?). Nice carbonation and smoothness, very pleasing!

A overall good beer....nice change of pace from other porters. But I don't think I could get hooked on it!

This porter pours like you would want. Dark, and a bit of a carmel color head.

This tastes a bit of sour, a bit of malt, a bit of hop. The sour is like grapefruit - very odd. The malt is almost smokey. The hop is dry and clean. It is a strange mix. There is a balance there, a sweetness, but also a strangeness.

Mouthfeel is kind of creamy.

The finish is sour and wet. This is where I'm picking up the grapefruit. The sour, flat finish.

The body is a bit thin. A little light for my tastes, but I guess it is on par for a porter.

I would not avoid this, but I woudn't go out of my way to look for it either. Though I am not disappointed, I am not thrilled either.

Black. Semi fragrant and attractive aroma highlighting the vanilla beans quite well along with the malt nose, which shows a bit of chocolate and roast. The flavor is a bit sweet with heavy vanilla and the slight hop fragrance in the nose has vanished. The malt backing, which was present in the nose, just does not back up the heavy and sweet vanilla beans. A bit sweet and a bit one dimensional.

Deep dark brown in color with a tan head. Smells was somewhat faint at first but eventaually showed itselt. Mainly smells of chocolate and a bit of fruitiness. The taste is decently complex, starting with a slight hop bite, then warmer and sweeter malt and chocolate flavors, and finally a very slight sourness with the vanilla flavors and a bit of coffee as well. Mouthfeel is a bit dry, but well balanced and great for the style. Overall the beer is complex, but not cloying or too instense in any way.

Poured from growler into a pint glass.

Nice dark, chocolate brown color with a moderate brown head that disappears quickly leaving no lacing. Vanilla is immediatel evident in the smell - it's almost syrupy, in fact. There's also some hint of caramel and a little chocolate. The vanilla is definitely noticeable in the taste, but it does not overpower. There is some dark chocolate, too, and bitter coffee aftertaste. This would make a very good dessert beer - I actually had a glass on Sunday with a piece of birthday cake.

Poured into pint glass.
A good aroma...coffee, pepper, vanilla, cherry.
Nice deep brown/black color. Head was a light brown, foaming heap of suds..mmm.
Coffee hits first, followed by sugar, pepper, toffee , malt and chocolate..and then the vanilla and hops. A good balance. Very good style. Close to the Breckenridge Vanilla Porter

Appearance: Pours a mahogany body with a beige head; decent retention but little lacing

Smell: A touch of vanilla over some roasted grainy notes

Taste: Starts out with a roasted character; mid-palate some coffee/tobacco bitterness kicks in and there are some sour notes as well; the vanilla appears at the end along with some sweetness

Mouthfeel: Light/medium bodied but rather fizzy

Drinkability: OK, but not particularly enticing

Brought back from Michigan by my brother-in-law.

Opens with an alarmingly noisy FWOOSH when I pop the cap, but no gushing is forthcoming. Pours a deep dark brown with mahogany highlights. A decent head rises up but fades down to a lacing. Not bad. Would have liked a little more head retention, but eh...

Smell falls off a bit -- very clean, unsweetened baker's chocolate that rises up at the end with a little yeast bite in the nose. Hope that's not a sign for the future.

Taste is very pleasing. Like Boston Beer Works' Vanilla Bean Stout, this is a beer that happens to have vanilla in it, not a vanilla beer. Initial mellow vanilla gives way to a decently deep black patent malt taste. Slightly vinous notes on the side of the tongue warm this up a bit, and keep it from being a one trick pony. Not overly sweet. Like I said above, this is a porter first, a beer with vanilla in it second.

Mouthfeel is a bit aggressive -- would have liked a little less prickle in the tickle, but it's not a deal breaker.

Drinkability isn't bad at all. I could see putting a few of these together for a session, and I don't have a sweet tooth at all.

All in all, a very nice beer, and it perks my interest in this brewery that I've never heard of before now. A refreshing change too, as it seems that every porter I see these days is an Imperial one. This is nice and simple, and I like it. I'll definately keep my eye out for more offerings from this brewery.

Dark brownish-black color with modest head but very good lacing. Milk-chocolate vies with lightly roasted malt in the nose. First taste is coffee-ish malt, fairly ordinary, but after a couple seconds a huge vanilla flavor roars in. If there's any hops, I can't find them under all the vanilla. Or any other flavors, in fact. Astringent texture with medium carbonation.

If you appreciate vanilla, this is a tasty beer, but it lacks subtlety. I enjoyed the first few quaffs, but it became rather boring half-way through.

I have to say I really like this stuff. Enough that I have driven across town to buy some more than once. Its beauty isn’t in the merits of just one beer, but rather as a session brew that for me is very drinkable over the course of an evening. The vanilla is there, but it fades to the background and you are left tasting a very decent porter.

It’s one of those beers I rate higher as a six-pack experience than as a single serving. It’s just dang drinkable.

Poured pitch black, with a very robust beige head. Head dissipated in to very pleasant lacing over time.

Smell was of coffee, chocolate, and vanilla, which came on late.

Taste was coffee with fruity notes, vanilla was present but understated throughout. Aftertaste was of lingering coffee and vanilla, but with a spicyness.

Mouthfeel was silky and full, just wonderful. This beers best feature by far.

A very drinkable beer, though I can't see drinking more than a few. This beer would be a perfect pairing with a scoop of ice cream, or as a dessert by itself. I expected the vanilla to be overpowering, I was pleasantly surprised by it's understated nature. The vanilla never tries to dominate the porter, just accompany it, and it does so quite well.

The beer pours a deep, dark black color with a thick frothy tan head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is average. It has a stale black malt scent along with some light vanilla notes and a bit of roasted malt aroma. The taste is decent. It has a smooth black and chocolate malt flavor that goes down easy and finishes dry and earthy. It has a vanilla feel, but nothing over the top. I can see why there isn't too many of these around. The mouthfeel is good. It is a full flavored beer with adequate carbonation. This is a neat concept. I like the flavor, but it isn't what I'd imagined it to be. Overall, a pretty good porter.

pours a dark mahogany with a beige head.
the smell of chocolate and vanilla with a little fruity yeast.
the flavor is dark and malty with a hint of chocolate and vanilla with a little hop bitterness.
the mouthfeel is a little tingly very fine carbonation. has a fullness from from it semi-sweetness.