King James Ale
Legend Brewing Co.

Appears a dark brown with a light tan head that slowly fades out. Scattered lacing is left around the glass.
Smell is of roasted nuts, toffee, cream, cocoa, light buttercream, and gentle smoke.
Taste is of the aromas with a decent mix in a different but enjoyable flavor.
Mouthfeel is medium bodied, creamy, smooth, sugary with mild cocoa bitterness hitting the tongue on the swallow.

Pours a dark reddish amber that is almost opaque with a nice half finger of tiny tan bubbles that melt slowly to a tan ring.

Aromas are deliciously roasted dark chocolate malts with a hint of citrus hops. A little bit of roasted dark coffee beans seem to be in the nose as well.

Taste follows aroma only more so. Roasted dark chocolate malt with roasted coffee perfectly and mellowly blended with the light citrus hops to create a wonderfully refreshing dark porter-like beer.

Mouthfeel is creamy and smooth with lots of tiny carbonation and aftertaste is a clean reminder of everything you tasted.

A- Very deep garnet, appears opaque until held up to the light. Nice light tan head that has decent retention. Good-looking beer we got here!

S- Roasted malt and light coffee with a heavy dose of citrusy hops. Not a typical porter smell, but good nonetheless.

T- Perfectly melded hops and roasted malt. The malt gives the beer a great roasty flavor and a touch of sweetness while the hops lend a fantastic citrus character. The two are blended almost perfectly, both complementing each other without either one taking control. Moderate bitterness on the finish. Very nice.

M- A little on the light side for a porter, although I'm not even sure that this beer was intended to be a porter per se. Carbonation is pretty high, but it all works and seems to fit the beer well.

D- Well, the ABV on this beer remains a mystery, although I can't imagine it would be too high due to its light body and the lack of any alcohol taste. I can't imagine it would be any higher than about 6%. As such, I'm going to say that this beer is extremely drinkable, and I would most certainly have another.

This is a very unique beer. When I first tried it, I had no idea what style it could be. It just didn't taste like any porter I had ever had. The hop presence was too high and the flavor was entirely different. If this is indeed intended to be a porter, then it redefines the style. Styles be damned, though; this is a good beer. I highly recommend trying it if you can get your hands on some.

Pours a nearly opaque black with a creamy, well-sustained tan head. Mild chocolaty aroma. Rich but not overly astringent roasted coffee bitterness, delicious chocolate and caramel notes, and a smooth roasted grain character. An assertive but minor citrus hop note as well. Moderate mouthfeel with a fairly active carbonation tang. Chocolately, roasted grain finish.

Drinkable, even for a porter, with delicious roasted flavors and very nice chocolate/caramel flavors. Too bad I only had one 22oz bottle; I could have drank this stuff all day.

Highly recommended…

I am not usually a porter fan, but this beer was a fantastic surprise.

A: I poured the beer into a 24 oz mug, so the beer was nigh on pitch black. Upon holding the glass to sunlight, a deep ruby color popped out. The head only amounted to about a half inch, and light brownish yellow in color. The head dissipated rather quickly. There was practically no lacing to speak of.

S: The smell was the first indication that this beer was different. A very strong coffee and chocolate aroma dominates this brew. I also picked up a subtle hop aroma which surprised me.

T: I expected a sweet, fruity taste, and was taken aback by the roasted malt and prevalent hop bitterness. The finish revived the chocolate and coffee hints.

M: At first, the mouthfeel was a bit thin. Strangely, as the beer warmed a bit, it actually seemed to get more viscous... which is completely counter-intuitive.

D: As previously stated, I am not a porter guy. I couldn't drink this beer all evening, but I would jump at the opportunity to drink it again, perhaps with a big plate of ribs, before moving on to my regular hop-heavy brews. This beer was an unexpected treat in a style I regularly avoid. It's certainly worth a try should the opportunity present itself.

As I said, I'm not a porter fan, and couldn't drink this in session, but would certainly try it again given the opportunity.

Pours a deep brown, almost black color, with brilliant ruby highlights around the edges. One finger head has decent retention, and leaves only a bit of lace behind.

Aroma is great. Tons of toasted malts, deep biscuit flavors, fresh bread yeast, toffee, and a touch of piney hops in the back. Slight coffee aroma melds well with the faint hops.

Flavor is fantastic. Again massive amounts of toasted malts give this a great bready flavor, with some pretty complex deep malt flavors. Chocolate is a bit more present, and backs up the coffee well. Slightly sweet up front, with a relatively dry finish. Mouthfeel is creamy, but slightly overcarbonated. Drinkability is great.

Once again, Legend's Seasonal beers do not disappoint. This is a fantastic porter, and it really makes me with that they'd replace their regular porter with this one. If this was on cask, I could drink it all night long. Well worth seeking out and trying.

Aw yeah bro, this porter was definately kind. I think it was more of a British style porter - at least one of the guys from Legend told me, and you can't just take some hippy on the street's word for it. Smelled of sweet caramel and roast and the flavor was more chocolate than roast with a creamy smooth body. It was really good, if a bit on the sweeter side.

yeah man... nose was way more hoppy than expexted. it was like i smelled hops but it just wasn't possible for a porter to smell that way... pretty darn complex... what was cool about this one was that it didn't taste the same as it smelled... so much going on... chocolate... and so unbitter yet subtly hoppy... totally not what i expected, in a good way, and that is always nice... not what i would choose for a daily, but stoked to get the chance to taste something unique... go va

Presentation: 22 oz bottle, no dating but the label proclaims that "This celebratory beer is brewed in honor of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown." (It also mentions that the beer is fresh and unpasteurized and should be kept cool.) Oh, and I poured it into a pint glass.

Appearance: Pours a completely opaque dark brown color, nearly black but not quite. the head formed a tan colored 2-3 fingers, very creamy with good retention.

Aroma: Piney hops, very pleasant. You'd think with a color like this it'd be more roasted malts but I didn't detect any. Still, it smells great.

Taste: All hops up front, very smooth though. A little roasted and chocolate malts come through in the end. The finish is a mix of roasted malts and more hops, it all lingers nicely on the tongue.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth, almost silky. the carbonation was also in good balance.

Overall: Don't think I've ever had a beer quite like this. Dark like a porter with some roasted malts but dominated by hops like an pale ale or IPA, and yet so smooth. I hope they make this a regular offering, it's excellent. If you haven't given this one a try do so immediately.

On tap at Legends.

Appearance: Very dark brown, hints of red at edges. Much darker than the Ale that I was expecting:

Smell: Great fresh hoppy aromas. Piney and fruity like Cascade hops but not sure what kind are used. Little bit of malt, but just awesome in the hops side.

Taste: Wonderful hop flavor. Very fresh and lasts throughout the drink. Little bit of yeast but more grapefruit again making me think this is a Cascade hop. Little bit of bannana and malt.

Overall one of the best from this brewery and sad to see it as a one off brew. Its a wonderful mix of what might be a light porter with dry hopping to mix two great styles.

Poured from a 22oz. bomber.
Inscription on the label reads: "This celebratory beer is brewed in honor of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown."

A: Pours a very dark, nearly opaque body, with burgandy and ruby in the center when held up to the light. Large, pillow-y tan head that retains well. Active carbonation.

S: This beer is very young and fresh, because herbal, peppery hops almost dominate the nose, regardless of the nearly black body. It throws some pine oils in to boot. There are some subtle cocoa aromas, which open up more once it warms. There's a toasted malt quality here. What is this beer?! Could be a porter or a stout.

M: Light-med. body that's velvety soft and smooth. Good, ample carbonation that's just right.

T: Young beer, as hops are nearly as evident as the dark malts. It gives off a very herbal/tea-like hop flavor that persists throughout to the finish. Some green banana is part of the biproduct. This is balanced with rich yet light bodied malt character. I'm tasting cocoa, some coffee, toasted nuts and caramel, as well as a little molasses. The dark chocolate is the lasting flavor here. Just a hint of yeast rounds it out.

D: Very satisfying brew, as it's easy to drink and has a decently complex, delicious malt flavor that's rounded out with very fresh hops. I would pin it at 5.5-6.0% ABV. Could use some maturing to settle down the lively hops though.

Good brew!