Brewer's Reserve Rum Barrel Coconut Porter
Central Waters Brewing Co.

 

 

12oz bottle with a 2018 notch and 04618 printed on bottle neck (2 1/2 years old) poured into a tulip glass at fridge temp, no ABV listed on label. The beer pours dense dark brown with little light penetration and mocha colored head. The head recedes to a pencil thin ring. The aroma is tangy porter and faint rum barrel. The taste is rum soaked porter with a hint of coconut, vanilla and barrel. Minimal to moderate bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with average carbonation and a somewhat dry finish. Overall, good.

12oz bottle pre-aged from Blue Max Liquors

Tastes friggin' amazing. Smell, too. Vanilla and bourbon (?) are exploding out at me. No burn, just velvety smoothness delivering a plethora of dark malt, vanilla and oak.

The years helped this one along very well

Pours very dark, almost black, with little head and very thin lacing. Goes down smooth for the ABV; the rum is very forward, coconut not so much, just a hint, a long with a little sweet vanilla flavor. Fairly thick feel, with a very mild burn from the rum, but nothing off-putting. Pretty good, though I've had a few better coconut porters. Definitely worth buying again.

Look: The beer pours very dark brown and opaque. The edges are translucent chestnut. A light brown, loosely packed head goes away quickly, but for a very thin ring of foam around the edge of the glass. No lacing and no visible carbonation.

Smell: Dark dried fruit including raisins and dates. From 2018, this beer is showing slight signs of age and oxidation with some staleness. Not enough to put me off. Fruit cake, brown sugar, molasses, cherry cola, and some hazelnut. Chocolate. Faint chocolate/coconut candy as the beer warms.

Taste: I’ve never had this beer fresh. No signs of age though. Very clean flavor. On the tip of the tongue some sweet and slightly tart fruit flavors include raisin and cherry cordial. Mid palate some milk chocolate and nutty. Nothing on the flavor says coconut.

Feel: Medium level of carbonation. Very smooth and pretty full bodied. Pleasant warmth on the palate and in the pipes with some sticky sweetness on the lips. Great feel.

Overall: I’m really enjoying this beer. Age is treating it pretty well. Some coconut on the nose but not much flavor. It has held up well with age. The sweet, syrupy candy cherry aromas and flavors are an unexpected surprise.

 

19 February 2020 - Beer #32

Price: $6.99 at Food Emporium on 8th Avenue in Manhattan

Appearance: 3 - very dark brown with no head at all. Floaties everywhere. Eww...

Nose: 4 - roasted malt and coconut. I guess they nailed it. Might smell a bit fake, contrived.

Taste: 3 - A bit of a mess. Very sweet. Not much porter, not much coconut, not much rum, not much better than a macro lager.

Mouth: 4 - quite bubbly and sticky. Decently crafted.

Overall: 3 - Rum and coconut are usually a can't-miss combo. We'll have to give Central Waters a pass on this one.

Cheers!

2018 bottle. Poured into a wine glass. Opaque dark brown with a small tan head that quickly left. Smooth rum on the nose, along with coconut and milk chocolate. The malt and coconut are more present on the palate. The rum and coconut blended well producing a nice vanilla note. Chocolate and caramel as well. Slightly boozy but I'm not complaining. Well done.

A sprinkle of coconut floccules can be seen floating at the neck of the bottle before pouring. Pours chestnut in color topped by a meager skim of khaki bubbles that sputter away in cola-like fashion. Decadent aroma smells of toffee, peat, fruitcake, dates, figs, rum, and coconut.

The taste features caramel, rum, and burnt sugar up front, succeeded by roasted malt and warming alcohol on the back end. Warming reveals notes of marshmallow and coconut. Modest hops are earthy in nature, allowing the alcohol to afford most of the contrast with the sweet malt profile. Medium body and low carbonation make for a still, slightly thin mouthfeel that reminds you this is a porter and not a stout.

Overall, this is a robust, flavorful brew that comes off a little hot and unwieldy. It's quite reminiscent of Bell's Rum Barrel Bear Hug, albeit slightly less complex. While enjoyable, it doesn't stack up to Central Waters' finer offerings in their perpetually expanding stable of barrel-aged beers.

 

 

Deep brown, little head

Vanilla and rum

Coconut, sweet caramel, rum, brown sugar finish, alcohol pretty hidden

Smooth mouthfeel.

Very nice sipper as it warms, these Brewer's Reserve beers never disappoint!

 

**
11/11/19

Happy Veterans Day. Go Hawks.

Very tasty rum and coconut mix. Nice-looking Porter thick dark black color. Small creamy looking beige head. Lots of coconut and rum in the nose. Taste is more of the same; charred barley is the backbone. The feel is very smooth. 9/10 thick , pretty chewy.

Just a very nice porter, with some of my favorite flavors done proud.
**
05/21/2020

Just raiding my cellar on a weekly basis to get through. This is still very nice 6 months later. Yum. Coconut and rum are smooth and meshing well at this point.

My other 2 are stored away. One awaiting an aged Central Waters tasting in the future; and another destined for maybe a longer cellaring.

**
06/25/20

Stream of Conciousness speech to text review of 8 BA Central Waters beers.
Tasting with DC listening to Dread Zeppelin.

Actual Pre-rank (upon edit)
1. Coconut Rum Porter
2. Peruvian Morning
3. Barleywine
4. Vanilla Bean Stout
5. Cassian Sunset
6. Scotch
7. Stout
8. Quad (not rated).


Post Rank
1. Scotch, 4.5
2. Coconut Rum Porter, 4.45
3. Peruvian Morning, 4.4
4. Barleywine, 4.25
5. Quad , 4.1
6. Stout, 4.03
7. Cassian Sunset, 4.02
8. Vanilla Bean Stout, 3.95
**

2019 dated bottle into a stemmed snifter. Pours dark brown cola in color. Small fizzy tan head that dissipates quickly. Sweet toasted and spicy rum notes on the nose. Some chocolate as well. Sweet up front, chocolate mild coconut. More of the barrel on the finish, a bit overpowering and cloying. Surprisingly boozy for a porter as you certainly feel the 12+% ABV. Slick and creamy body. Again surprisingly full bodied for a porter.

 

 

From a 12 oz. bottle into a PAA Pirate whiskey glass, this beer pours out streams of dark brown while lighter brown highlights run throughout. It forms a thin crown, peanut in color, that doesn’t stick around long.

The nose carries fruity and botanical rum notes mixing with silky milk chocolate and a touch of coconut.

The taste brings that silky milk chocolate back mixing with the fruity rum and touches of coconut that don’t overpower. The one thing that could back off a little is the rum. It would be nice if the other notes were able to shine through a little more than they do.

A little thin on the body, but it is a porter too. It brings a slight alcohol burn to remind you it’s high ABV.

Overall, a really tasty porter.