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Baltic Porter
Dovetail Brewery


Beer Geek Stats
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- From:
- Dovetail Brewery
- Illinois, United States
- Style:
- Baltic Porter
Ranked #31 - ABV:
- 6.6%
- Score:
- 92
Ranked #5,268 - Avg:
- 4.16 | pDev: 5.05%
- Reviews:
- 26
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Jul 25, 2022
- Added:
- Feb 21, 2020
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 2
SCORE
92
Outstanding
92
Outstanding


Notes:
When the popular English Porter started traveling up the Baltic coast in the 1800s, brewers in Sweden, Finland, Poland, and Russia adapted the style and made it their own. This Dovetail version is based on the Baltic Porters we love to pick up at the Polish delis on the West Side.
It's our darkest lager; capped by a large stand of cream-colored foam to showcase deep and rich malt aromas of milk chocolate, raisins, and restrained coffee roast. It's smooth and balanced, but exhibits slightly more bravado and complexity than its English counterparts.
It's our darkest lager; capped by a large stand of cream-colored foam to showcase deep and rich malt aromas of milk chocolate, raisins, and restrained coffee roast. It's smooth and balanced, but exhibits slightly more bravado and complexity than its English counterparts.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by sjrider from California
4.13/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.13/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Can pour -my last beer from the lager fest box, opaque dark roasty brown with thick khaki head leaving scattered lacing. Nose is all malty goodness. Taste follows with a few nuanced dark flavors. Decently carbonated- finishes on the thin side, really an easy quaffer. A tasty dark lager.
Nov 03, 2021Reviewed by Rug from Massachusetts
4.3/5 rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.3/5 rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Canned 1/13/21
I don’t drink nearly enough Baltic porters. It always strikes me as odd that they’re actually lagers. This particular one was featured in the Lagerfest in Cyberspace, the only virtual beer fest on BA that I did not attend. However, I was lucky that Half Time still had some in stock so that way I get to try what many others did. Let’s dive in
Pours an opaque dark brown with 3 fingers of pillowy tan head that slowly fades to a cap and leaves minimal lacing
In the nose, this has the roasty character of an American stout and the slight fruitiness of an English porter, it’s really a nice balance. I’m picking up on aromas of creamy milk chocolate, white grape, light roasted coffee, soft oak, chewy caramel malt, and raisin
In taste it leans more towards the fruity English notes, but there’s still a decent balance to it. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting raisin, chewy caramel, milk chocolate, light roasted malt, and light toast. The swallow brings notes of rich toffee, golden raisin, creamy coffee, vanilla, milk chocolate, and roasted malt
A medium body pairs with minimal carbonation, resulting in a creamy and rich beer. Finishes off dry with a balanced sweetness
This is one hell of a beer. I could put away a lot of this one. Just another reason to have more of the style
Sep 23, 2021I don’t drink nearly enough Baltic porters. It always strikes me as odd that they’re actually lagers. This particular one was featured in the Lagerfest in Cyberspace, the only virtual beer fest on BA that I did not attend. However, I was lucky that Half Time still had some in stock so that way I get to try what many others did. Let’s dive in
Pours an opaque dark brown with 3 fingers of pillowy tan head that slowly fades to a cap and leaves minimal lacing
In the nose, this has the roasty character of an American stout and the slight fruitiness of an English porter, it’s really a nice balance. I’m picking up on aromas of creamy milk chocolate, white grape, light roasted coffee, soft oak, chewy caramel malt, and raisin
In taste it leans more towards the fruity English notes, but there’s still a decent balance to it. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting raisin, chewy caramel, milk chocolate, light roasted malt, and light toast. The swallow brings notes of rich toffee, golden raisin, creamy coffee, vanilla, milk chocolate, and roasted malt
A medium body pairs with minimal carbonation, resulting in a creamy and rich beer. Finishes off dry with a balanced sweetness
This is one hell of a beer. I could put away a lot of this one. Just another reason to have more of the style
Rated by Manta200 from Kentucky
4.21/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.21/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Lagerfest in Cyberspace 2021
Sep 07, 2021Reviewed by BFCarr from New Jersey
4.18/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.18/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Roasty and tasty.
Pours deep brown with a thick tan head. Aroma is roasted malts and dark chocolate. Taste follow, with the dark chocolate taking a bigger role over the roasted malt/coffee notes. Not much bitterness beyond what you'd get from regular dark chocolate and the sweetness is muted too. Feel is very good for a lager, fairly creamy and smooth. Overall, it's creeping up at 6.6% but it delivers on the nice non-bitter roasted chocolate porter flavor.
Aug 29, 2021Pours deep brown with a thick tan head. Aroma is roasted malts and dark chocolate. Taste follow, with the dark chocolate taking a bigger role over the roasted malt/coffee notes. Not much bitterness beyond what you'd get from regular dark chocolate and the sweetness is muted too. Feel is very good for a lager, fairly creamy and smooth. Overall, it's creeping up at 6.6% but it delivers on the nice non-bitter roasted chocolate porter flavor.
Reviewed by Weisenbeer from Ohio
4.13/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
4.13/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Very very nice. Great nose but not as exciting in appearance. Tastes yummy and, to my unsophisticated palette, is just a good and solid basic porter.
Aug 27, 2021Reviewed by Thankin_Hank from Texas
4.54/5 rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.54/5 rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Looks dark with a thick head. Smells like licorice. Taste like wood, fruit and cherries. Has a mild bitterness and then I get that teeth sucking, tongue licking and lip smacking mouthfeel. Probably the best Baltic Porter I ever tasted. Thanks to Jenny Pfafflin and Hagen Dost. Send some to Texas. Thanks in advance.
The last in the LagerFest 2021 lineup.
Aug 26, 2021The last in the LagerFest 2021 lineup.
Reviewed by beergoot from Colorado
4.12/5 rDev -1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4.12/5 rDev -1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured a clear, dark brown color topped with a thick and frothy, light khaki hued head; sticky clumps of foam dot the glass. Nice roasted grain and cocoa smell. Excellent bittersweet chocolate flavor; cocoa; mild to moderate bitterness. Heavy body; smooth and glassy on the palate; beautiful residual sugar feel to the beer; finishes sweet with just a touch of dryness to round things out.
This is the final beer from the BA LagerFest this past weekend. Overall, this is a tasty, balanced, and nicely complex dark lager.
Poured at 48 °F; date on the bottom of the can looks to be 01/1/21
Aug 25, 2021This is the final beer from the BA LagerFest this past weekend. Overall, this is a tasty, balanced, and nicely complex dark lager.
Poured at 48 °F; date on the bottom of the can looks to be 01/1/21
Reviewed by puck1225 from Texas
3.71/5 rDev -10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.71/5 rDev -10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Last of the Beer Fest beers.
Pours a clear dark brown color with decent initial beige head a good curtain lacing. Subdued smell, maybe some dark chocolate. Flavors include dark chocolate, dark ripe fruit and a bit of coffee. Nothing really outstanding. It did go fine with dinner. Not something I would seek out.
Aug 24, 2021Pours a clear dark brown color with decent initial beige head a good curtain lacing. Subdued smell, maybe some dark chocolate. Flavors include dark chocolate, dark ripe fruit and a bit of coffee. Nothing really outstanding. It did go fine with dinner. Not something I would seek out.
Reviewed by BPence99 from California
4.68/5 rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
4.68/5 rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
This Baltic Porter from Dovetail in Chicago seemed to have stole the show at Lager Fest 2021. It is an exceptional beer. Creamy and smooth, malted chocolate flavors are present along with the port wine aromas. There is also some brown sugar and raisin flavors too. So very good. Cheers to the brewer Jenny Pfafflin!
Aug 23, 2021Reviewed by BeerAndGasMasks from Virginia
3.92/5 rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.92/5 rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
From the can, it pours a stygian dark brown color with a modest light brown head that slowly diminishes and leaves lacing. In the nose, it is roasted malts, figs, and licorice. In the mouth, the roasted and black malts come through, with a faint, lingering taste of licorice after.
Aug 22, 2021Reviewed by ovaltine from Indiana
4.5/5 rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.5/5 rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours dark mahogany brown with a dense, creamy tan head. Beautiful beer. The nose is cocoa up front, with a notable stone fruit aroma (primarily dark cherry and dates) as well.
The cocoa is forward on the taste, and truly delicious, but it does not overwhelm the stone fruit flavors, which provide a tangy note that works exceptionally well, and there’s a roasty flavor at the back of the palate that is the cherry on this porter sundae. Fantastic stuff.
This is my first beer from Dovetail. I’ll be making a trip there soon to immerse myself in the Dovetail experience, because this is a world-class beer, IMHO.
Aug 22, 2021The cocoa is forward on the taste, and truly delicious, but it does not overwhelm the stone fruit flavors, which provide a tangy note that works exceptionally well, and there’s a roasty flavor at the back of the palate that is the cherry on this porter sundae. Fantastic stuff.
This is my first beer from Dovetail. I’ll be making a trip there soon to immerse myself in the Dovetail experience, because this is a world-class beer, IMHO.
Reviewed by Bluecrow from New York
4.08/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
4.08/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
-jet can pour with a wisp of foam and a faint aroma of toasted malt and some sugar.
The flavor is rich with roasty malt notes and a hint of espresso and a bit of maple syrup in the finish.
This is thinner-bodied than some others of the style that I have had. It would be a regular winter go-to if I could find it.
Aug 22, 2021The flavor is rich with roasty malt notes and a hint of espresso and a bit of maple syrup in the finish.
This is thinner-bodied than some others of the style that I have had. It would be a regular winter go-to if I could find it.
Reviewed by UrbanCaveman from Ohio
4.63/5 rDev +11.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
4.63/5 rDev +11.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
16 oz can, poured into a pint glass at 40 degrees F.
L: Poured an inky black, and formed a couple fingers of off-white head with decent retention and spotty lacing.
S: Black bread, rusted iron, figs, and prunes.
T: Wow. This hits in waves of complexity, featuring rusted iron, black bread, copper, figs, prunes, cherries, and blackstrap molasses. This is beautiful.
F: Thick, syrupy, and delicious.
O: A wonderful example of a Baltic porter.
Aug 22, 2021L: Poured an inky black, and formed a couple fingers of off-white head with decent retention and spotty lacing.
S: Black bread, rusted iron, figs, and prunes.
T: Wow. This hits in waves of complexity, featuring rusted iron, black bread, copper, figs, prunes, cherries, and blackstrap molasses. This is beautiful.
F: Thick, syrupy, and delicious.
O: A wonderful example of a Baltic porter.
Reviewed by dacrza1 from New Jersey
4.1/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
4.1/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
DATE: August 21, 2021... OCCASION: beer number six in the lineup... GLASSWARE: Baltika pokal.... dark mahogany body with a healthy amount of fizzling brown head... roasted malts, cola, tootsie roll, licorice and ham make this a smorgasbord of aromas... thick, viscous, and warming--a solid mouthful... plums, fig, licorice, cherry and raisin suggest this is a malt-based, lager-yeasted beer, with a smoked exhale and a full mouthfeel... this is a great finish to a great night, chewy, fulfilling, and dessert-like, a caramel and toffee explosion that subtly sneaks up on you... this opened my eyes to the idea of a Baltic porter, which to this point meant heavy ABV and heavy malts, but now has a much more expansive definition...
Aug 22, 2021Reviewed by cjgiant from District of Columbia
4.34/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.34/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Dark with a sustaining mocha head. Nose is a sweet dark bread soaked in molasses. Shoo fly pie is in the realm of impressions, especially with my first sip. Though it's not so sweet as the molasses notes I allude to. It's got a dark fruit sweetness at most, but also brings in roasted malt notes in equal parts. Nothing is overpowering, and while there aren't any specific bitter notes to counter the mostly sweet descriptors I use, the beer is more balanced than this description might lead one to believe. In the end, this lager reminds me of a light version of a Belgian dark ale, which is a good thing.
Aug 22, 2021Reviewed by thebeers from Pennsylvania
4.19/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.19/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Very dark amber with two fat fingers of of khaki head that are quick to dissipate. Nice crown and decent lacing.
A little umami and chocolate-covered cherry in the nose.
Cherry, plum, grape, chocolate, roasty coffee and dark bread in the taste.
Slick, creamy feel with medium body and tight, soft carbonation.
Super well crafted. Complex. Delicious.
Aug 22, 2021A little umami and chocolate-covered cherry in the nose.
Cherry, plum, grape, chocolate, roasty coffee and dark bread in the taste.
Slick, creamy feel with medium body and tight, soft carbonation.
Super well crafted. Complex. Delicious.
Baltic Porter from Dovetail Brewery
Beer rating:
92 out of
100 with
61 ratings
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