The Difference Between Stouts and Porters

I'd say the distinction mostly applies if a single brewery makes both a stout and a porter. For example, Old Leghumper and Siberian Night. But still with some breweries it can be hard to tell the difference blind.

That being said, I've been disappointed more often by dark ales marketed as porters than stouts.

 

Stouts are originally "Stout Porters".

 

http://www.beerconnoisseur.com/porter-versus-stout

 

I don't understand how you just don't like them both. I drink both styles and enjoy them. Some are really good, and some not so, etc. Don't debate, just drink.

 

I expected a dead horse to be beaten in here when I entered. I was not disappointed. Regardless, even if a brewery can name a dark beer a porter or stout to it's liking; an overwhelming majority of Porters have had a taste largely of chocolate malt and crystal malts; while a stout shows more charred dark chocolate notes with coffee because of black barley and dark roasted malt. You can kill the dead horse all you want, but my opinion will always be the same. Sure, porters can use roasted malt but classically the caramel, toffee, and milk chocolate will be there.

Go ahead, throw your stylistic historical articles at me. I couldn't care less

 

Chocolate malt is a dark roasted malt. Black malt, another supposed main stay of porters is kilned to approximately the same degree lovibond as unmalted black barley. History aside, in a blind test, porter/stouts of roughly the same gravity are going to be hard to distinguish from each other.

 

Wrong. Historically, stout and porter recipes were identical. When brewers started using roasted barley in stout, they started using it in porter as well.

 

And your evidence for that assertion is what, exactly? Date(s) you made a survey of porters and stouts to back this claim up? Names of porters and stouts in your survey? Or might you be ... making it up?

 

When people say they have detected a difference what this means is that some of the ones that they have experienced show this trend.I certainly have never noticed any pattern which would differentiate between stouts and porters and I've sampled a hell of a lot of both.All I can say is that I love dark beers and I don't care what they are called

 

History and official guides aside, stouts to me are more hefty in mouthfeel and taste. But what does it really matter? They're both delicious! Just drink em!

 

Easy, I buy stouts more than I buy porters

 

Might I recommend Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald porter to the OP - this is one of my favorites.

 

Shhh.

Typically, a porter uses amber malts, whereas a stout uses dark malts. Both use ale yeasts versus lager yeasts. An imperial stout typically doubles the malts or 1.5's the malts of a standard stout.
Discussion over. Bye.

 

Yes, and we blew the doors off the argument, and anyone still left thinking there was a difference was mocked.

But porters are roastier!
(provide 30x roasty stouts)

but porters are thinner!
(provide 30x thicker-mouthfeel porters)

but stouts are higher alcohol!
(provide 30x imperial porters stronger than same brewery's stouts)

but but but but THEY ARE JUST DIFFERENT, OK???
(storms off)

 

THIS ^, but in to achieve viscosity and flavor alterations, read my other reply above. Basically the gold standard.

 

I know the answer...who would really drink BCBP? I just doesn't flow as well as BCBS. It's all about the acronyms!

 

KBP, FBP, BCBP..... My god, you might be on to something.

 

Porters I relate more to a brown ale for some reason or maybe its just me. They seem to have the hop present more than stouts and less kinda of mossy if you will.

 

Basically, you have....