Baltic Porter
Alaskan Brewing Co.

 

 

22oz bottle. 2018 consumed in 2022. Poured out an opaque, jet-black color with a small, light brown head of bubbly foam. It left some lacing. It smelled of roasted malt, toffee, caramel and rich chocolate. Nice boozy taste with chocolate, roasted malt and coffee flavors.

 

 

 

Baltic Porter from Alaskan Brewing. On room temperature shelf 18/3/21 at Tuscan Liquor & Deli, Grand Rapids, MI. $9.63 (Including tax)/22 oz bottle ($ 0.438/oz). Stored at home at 42 degrees. Reviewed 16/6/21. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on front label “BEST BY YEAR 2025”. Served at 49.6 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 58.1 degrees.
Appearance – 3.5.
First pour – Amber Brown (SRM 18), clear.
Body – Brown (SRM 20) muddy and opaque. When rear-lite, still opaque.
Head – Small (Maximum 2.5 cm, aggressive center pour), goldenrod, high density, average retention, diminishing to a seven mm crown fed around the complete circumference by aggressive carbonation, and a thick complete cap. Second pour produces a dense 2.2 cm head.
Lacing – Good. Alternating thick and thin rings of near-microscopic bubbles.
Aroma – 3 – Begins and ends with faint brown sugar, no hops, faint roasted malt, no yeast.
Flavor – 3.5 – Begins slightly sweet with some brown sugar and some roasted malt flavors. No cherries, no vanilla, no hops, no yeast, and no ethanol (9.8 % ABV, as marked on container) taste or aroma. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 3.5 – Medium, approaching creamy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 3.5 Pretty much an average example of the porter-stout spectrum, balanced between sweetness from the brown sugar and a slight tannic bitterness from the oak chips. Cherry, one of my favorite fruits and flavors, is totally missing and the vanilla is below my level of detection. Still, surprisingly reasonably priced. One I would select again if the price were compatible and the vintage different.

Midnight black pour with tan highlight and ring. Earthy and smoky on the nose, dark chocolate and dried black cherry with leather support. Taste has caramel, dried fruit and earth leading, bit of cola, char and bitter smoke finishing, seems to clash a little with the sweet and bitter. Feel is thin for style, maltwork is shortlived, somewhat harsh. It's ok but easily not one of the 19 best baltic porters I have had

22oz bottle
2020 release
L: dark brown body with maybe a slight reddish hue; thin tan head
S: fruitcake, cherry, vanilla, dark grain, dark fruit, bread, caramel, oak
T: liquid fruitcake here; bread crust, cherry, raisin, plum, caramel, vanilla, oak, tobacco, spice, white pepper, earthy hops
F: full body, moderate carbonation, alcohol is warming, excellently balanced with a semi-dry peppery finish with a hint of cherry lingering
O: SO much complexity with this one!

 

Rating from notes. Consumed Summer 2012. "Very good, but too boozy and one dimensionally malty to be great."

 

Black pour with a finger of khaki head.
Smells of roasty malts and dark chocolate.
Taste is dark roasty malts, toffee, dark fruits, also getting lots of oaky/almost BA notes.
Medium to full body, smooth.
Overall a very enjoyable porter.