100 Barrel Series #08 - Smoked Porter
Harpoon Brewery & Beer Hall

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing this, Bobby.

A: The pour is a dark brown color with a little bit of reddish tint and a thin layer of off-white head.

S: A light roasted malt aroma with only a light smoke note to it. There are some nice chocolate aromas with a little bit of metal to it. Sort of a bland nose.

T: The smoked malt is fairly mild. A touch of smoked salmon, maybe a bit of wood. Light chocolate flavor with a decent amount of roasted malt. A bit watery.

M: On the light side of medium with a medium carbonation.

O: I found how to make a smoked beer palatable: age it for several years.

22oz bottle from 2005.

Pours nearly opaque with mahogany edging and a half inch head of tan foam. A solid skim coat on the surface for the duration of the glass as well as some nice ropes of lacing.

Aromatics lead off with dried cocoa, smoldering embers, and faded coffee grounds. Hints of char and Oreo shells follow through.

Medium bodied with a slightly crisp and velvety mouthfeel.

Dark chocolate, espresso, and charred malt start the palate. A mild bitterness to balance but it seems to be from the acrid malts. Zero hops to speak of.

Finishes fairly thin and quick with a quick wave of smoke, bakers chocolate and a strange menthol-like undertone.

For a 5+% ABV brew this ones held up really well for six years. Never really was a big beer to begin with, but holding it's own quite nicely.

A-Pours a very dark cocoa brown tooped with a nice frothy tan head and little lacing.

S-Bacon in a glass. 'Nuff said.

T-A bit of sweet malt on the front is quickly washed away by the rich smoky bacon flavor. A bit one-dimensional but tasty.

M-A bit overcarbonated but otherwise medium bodied.

D-Good. An above average smoked porter.

HV

Wow. This is everything a smoked porter should ever be.

Pours dark brown with a stick-around head. The nose of this beer is exactly what you'd expect, malty dark roastiness with a puff of sitting-by-the-fire smoke. The greatness of this beer is in it's balance. The roasted and dark malts are firm but not opressive, the rich malty underbelly of this beer hoists the magnificent smoky wonder. Rich; delicious. There are hops but they are an afterthought. If ever there was a beer to give to a person who was not into smoked beers, this is it. Then they can try a schlenkerla. But they would probably rather have one of these. Amazing and delicious.

A: Nice dark brown, almost black, with a little bit lighter color when held up to the light. Small amount of head, that held for a little while.

S: Smoky, wood fire, bbq, malts, caramel. Excellent.

T: This is where it shines. It makes itself known as a porter with coffee undertones mixed in with the malt, however, the taste of smoke, wood, fire, and bbq come through. Very tasty. Drink one of these when you're cooking up some good bbq, and it's a perfect pairing.

M: Fairly standard for a porter. Not much carbonation, heavy, but not thick.

D: I really wish this was more than just there 100 barrel series. I would definitely buy this regularly. Despite being a dark beer, it's fantastic for pairing with BBQ in summertime.

12oz brown bottle with lots of info on the label; Brewer:Brett Simmons, series #8, 5.7%abv, 37 IBU's, and 14.4 original gravity. Brewed at the Windsor, VT brewery, this is a spring release with a best by date of 8/9/07. A dark brown, close to being black brew topped by a tan head. Mahogany at the edges when held to light. Mequite-like smell with a sweet porter roundness underneath that includes mocha iced coffee aromas. Sweet malt flavors upfront with a well-rounded roast taste. Smoked hardwood flavor starts at the midpoint and trails to a medium long finish. Perfect level of smokiness brings a campfire vibe to the privacy of your own home. Hops balance with bitterness that doesn't intrude on the other flavors. Rare style to be tried at least once for the truly unique experience of BBQ'd beer.

appearance - Dark chocolate brown color with a nice small head when poured. Later on it just had a ring around the rim.

smell - Roasted malt, and smoke smell.

taste - Smokey, but not overwelming for me. Had some hop at the end.

mouthfeel - Light-medium body.

drinkability - Encore series beer, I would purchase this again. Enoyed this.

Saw this encore series of 100 Bbl series a couple of weeks ago so I picked up a bottle to see what it was about.

A - Pitch black and thick with a dark brown tan head that lasts quites some time.

S - rich roasted sweet malts with a hint of underlying smoky peat aroma.

T - similar to the aroma but with a touch of hops bite to round out the flavors.

M - oddly light to medium bodied, creamy smooth and mildy carbonated.

D - smooth and refreshing. went amazing with a homemade spicy chicken quesadilla.

definitely worth a try!

12oz serving - best by 08/09/07...well within.

An opaque pour with a big stiff tan head that resists fading. A nice amount of lacing observed.

The smell is an earthy malt with a roasted smoky character that is not overbearing. Medium bodied, the mouth feel is creamy and nicely carbonated. Nicely balanced, the texture complements the flavor well. It finishes with a slight sweetness and with another burst of nutty flavor.

A good drinker. Thanks to FLBC for the opportunity to try this one.

The beer pours a dark brown color with a thick frothy tan head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a dry, roasted scent that boasts of caramel malts and a mild smoked malt aroma. The taste is good also. It has a smooth, malty flavor that goes down easy and finishes dry with a slight smokey edge. This is a nice smoked porter. It's got a wondeful peated feel that's not too aggressive. The mouthfeel is good. It's a full bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is a good drinking brew and one they should bring back each year for a seasonal mix pack or something.

12 oz encore series of 100 Bbl series

A - very dark, nearly impenetrable, still discernible as brown though and not black, a full finger of caramel brown head sits atop that fades in a minute or two

S - smoky indeed, smoky roasted malts dominate, some slight sweetness follows, but the smokiness overwhelms, but not to a fault

T - smokiness, as expected persists to the flavor well, a nice woody charcoal-y smokiness, not some conjuerd up smokiness, probably one of the smoothest smoky flavors i have experienced, light with some hoppy background, very enjoyable

M&D - light bodied and smooth, as mentioned, quite refreshing, the smokiness is distinct enough to be nice, but light enough to not be cumbersome, a nice beer, one of the better 100 Bbl series

I had the original a few years ago and was glad to see this as an encore.
Pours out dark brown with an off white head that drops pretty quickly.
Smells of roasted malts , caramel and a bit of smoke.
Tastes a lot like it smells...mostly sweet carmel , toasty malt and smoke. A slight bit of chalk. I think that the intensity of the flavors is a bit less than the orginal , but that may be my faulty memory. Mouthfeel is a little thin and the carbonation medium.
It is a drinkable porter.

I realize now that this beer is retired but I just had to review it anyway. It's now available in 6 packs.

Appearance: Dark, dark brown color. Almost hard for light to penetrate. Excellent for a beer of its' style.

Smell:Rich and toasty with the aroma of the smoked malts coming through strongly. The aroma makes me hungry for something like steak or sausages. A bit of coffee comes through in the aroma.

Taste: Much like I described for aroma. The coffee hint is more pronounced though with the smoked malts in the background.

Mouthfeel: Leaves a decent aftertaste with just a slight warm feeling on the back of the tongue.

Drinkability: Very drinkable version of this style. It's something to aim for when making a smoked porter yourself (which is what I did).